What If We Do Not Operate? Outcomes of Nonoperatively Managed Emergency General Surgery Patients.

INTRODUCTION: Although two-thirds of patients with emergency general surgery (EGS) conditions are managed nonoperatively, their long-term outcomes are not well described. We describe outcomes of nonoperative management in a cohort of older EGS patients and estimate the projected risk of operative management using the NSQIP Surgical Risk Calculator (SRC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We studied single-center inpatients aged 65 y and more with an EGS consult who did not undergo an operation (January 2019-December 2020). For each patient, we recorded the surgeon's recommendation as either an operation was "Not Needed" (medical management preferred) or "Not Recommended" (risk outweighed benefits). Our main outcome of interest was mortality at 30 d and 1 y. Our secondary outcome of interest was SRC-projected 30-day postoperative mortality risk (median % [interquartile range]), calculated using hypothetical low-risk and high-risk operations. RESULTS: We included 204 patients (60% female, median age 75 y), for whom an operation was "Not Needed" in 81% and "Not Recommended" in 19%. In this cohort, 11% died at 30 d and 23% died at 1 y. Mortality was higher for the "Not Recommended" cohort (37% versus 5% at 30 d and 53% versus 16% at 1 y, P < 0.05). The SRC-projected 30-day postoperative mortality risk was 3.7% (1.3-8.7) for low-risk and 5.8% (2-11.8) for high-risk operations. CONCLUSIONS: Nonoperative management in older EGS patients is associated with very high risk of short-term and long-term mortality, particularly if a surgeon advised that risks of surgery outweighed benefits. The SRC may underestimate risk in the highest-risk patients.

A Healthcare System-Level Intervention to Increase Naloxone Availability for Patients With Opioid Prescriptions.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: National guidelines recommend prescribing naloxone to patients receiving chronic opioids. However, provider adherence to naloxone co-prescribing best practices is poor and knowledge gaps for improvement efforts are large. As part of a system-wide quality improvement intervention to improve opioid safety, we sought to improve access to naloxone for patients with opioid prescriptions. METHODS: A prompt for naloxone co-prescribing was implemented in the electronic health record. Baseline data and data after implementation were collected for naloxone co-prescribing and fill rates on naloxone prescriptions s (n = 9122 pre, 8368 post). RESULTS: In the 9 months following the implementation of the electronic prompt, the total number of naloxone prescriptions increased more than 15-fold. Patients prescribed naloxone filled their naloxone prescriptions similarly (42%) before and after the prompt implementation, resulting in a marked increase in the absolute number of patients with access to naloxone. Patient fill rates varied by clinical area (33% emergency medicine to 47% general medicine). CONCLUSION AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: An electronic prompt, encouraging providers to prescribe naloxone to at-risk patients led to a marked increase in the percentage of patients with an active naloxone prescription. The availability of naloxone in communities saves lives and this study is the first to demonstrate an intervention, which led to increased naloxone prescribing and reported on actual pharmacy fills of naloxone when co-prescribed with opioids. (Am J Addict 2020;00:00-00).

Effect of a stewardship intervention on adherence to uncomplicated cystitis and pyelonephritis guidelines in an emergency department setting.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate adherence to uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTI) guidelines and UTI diagnostic accuracy in an emergency department (ED) setting before and after implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship intervention. METHODS: The intervention included implementation of an electronic UTI order set followed by a 2 month period of audit and feedback. For women age 18-65 with a UTI diagnosis seen in the ED with no structural or functional abnormalities of the urinary system, we evaluated adherence to guidelines, antimicrobial use, and diagnostic accuracy at baseline, after implementation of the order set (period 1), and after audit and feedback (period 2). RESULTS: Adherence to UTI guidelines increased from 44% (baseline) to 68% (period 1) to 82% (period 2) (P≤.015 for each successive period). Prescription of fluoroquinolones for uncomplicated cystitis decreased from 44% (baseline) to 14% (period 1) to 13% (period 2) (P<.001 and P = .7 for each successive period). Unnecessary antibiotic days for the 200 patients evaluated in each period decreased from 250 days to 119 days to 52 days (P<.001 for each successive period). For 40% to 42% of cases diagnosed as UTI by clinicians, the diagnosis was deemed unlikely or rejected with no difference between the baseline and intervention periods. CONCLUSIONS: A stewardship intervention including an electronic order set and audit and feedback was associated with increased adherence to uncomplicated UTI guidelines and reductions in unnecessary antibiotic therapy and fluoroquinolone therapy for cystitis. Many diagnoses were rejected or deemed unlikely, suggesting a need for studies to improve diagnostic accuracy for UTI.