Utilization of Clinical Pathways Can Reduce Drug Spend Within the Oncology Care Model.

PURPOSE: Reducing drug spend is one of the greatest challenges for practices participating in the Oncology Care Model (OCM). Evidence-based clinical pathways have the potential to decrease drug spend while maintaining clinical outcomes consistent with published evidence. The goal of this study was to determine whether voluntary use of clinical pathways by a practice can maximize OCM episodic cost savings. METHODS AND MATERIALS: A community oncology practice used evidence-based clinical pathways for OCM-attributed patients. All treatment plans were submitted to the pathway vendor in real time for clinical pathway adherence measurement. Analysis was conducted before implementation and on an ongoing daily and weekly basis to identify cases in which higher cost drugs or regimens were ordered. A clinical data governance committee met biweekly to review clinical pathway performance metrics and drug utilization. RESULTS: From quarter 1 of 2017 to quarter 1 of 2019, the median drug spend increased less rapidly for Cancer Care Specialists of Illinois (CCSI; 18.6%) compared with OCM (34.4%). Furthermore, the percent difference in drug spend for CCSI relative to OCM decreased from 13.5% to 0.1% (P < .001). Each quarter, there was approximately a 1.7% decrease (95% CI, 1.0% to 2.4%) in drug spend for CCSI relative to OCM. Additional analyses found that, over a 15-month period (October 2017 through December 2019), CCSI achieved an increase in pathway adherence from 69% to 81%. CONCLUSION: Reduction in drug spend is possible within a value-based care model, using evidence-based clinical pathways.

Impact of Substance Use Disorder on Midterm Mortality After Valve Surgery for Endocarditis.

BACKGROUND: Fueled by the burgeoning opioid epidemic, valve surgeries for substance use disorder-related infective endocarditis (SUD-IE) are increasing. The impact of substance use disorder on postvalve replacement morbidity needs further investigation. METHODS: We queried The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database for all valve surgeries for infective endocarditis at Tufts Medical Center (2002-2016) and collected demographic and disease-related data, including timing of mortality subclassified as short-term (<6 months including operative), midterm (6 months to 5 years), and extended-term (>5 years). Patients with documentation of illicit drug use before the operation were considered to have SUD-IE. Deaths were confirmed through review of medical record and matching with the Massachusetts Vital Statistics Database. We performed univariate and multivariate proportional hazard regressions examining the impact of substance use disorder mortality in people who received a valve replacement. RESULTS: In the cohort of 228 patients, 80 (35%) had SUD-IE. Eight-six people (38%) died, and overall mortality was higher in people with SUD-IE compared with non-SUD-IE (48% vs 32%, P = .025). SUD-IE was associated with a higher risk of overall mortality (adjusted hazard ratio, 2.41; 95% confidence interval, 1.38-4.20; P = .002). Although the difference between short-term or extended-term mortality was not significant, SUD-IE was associated with increased frequency of midterm mortality (53% vs 31%, P = .003). CONCLUSIONS: Our data reflect high rates of postvalve surgery morbidity and mortality in people with SUD-IE at a tertiary care center. The midterm postoperative period is a vulnerable period for people with SUD-IE worthy of further investigation.