Assessment of Physician Needs and Access to Inflammatory Bowel Disease Specialty Care Resources in a National Integrated Health System.
Dig Dis Sci
; 2024 Jul 27.
Article
de En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39068377
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The barriers to providing high-quality inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) care go beyond educational needs alone to include access to IBD-related resources such as medications, laboratory testing, and multidisciplinary teams. We assessed the needs and resource constraints of physicians caring for Veterans with IBD to inform efforts to improve access to high-quality care.METHODS:
We conducted a national observational survey study in July 2021 of gastroenterologists (GIs) and primary care providers (PCPs) caring for Veterans with IBD within the Veterans Health Administration with the intent of including physicians from all 18 Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISN). We reported descriptive statistics and compared responses between gastroenterologists (GIs) and primary care providers (PCPs), practice locations, and years of experience using χ2 tests.RESULTS:
Overall, 173 of 2241 eligible physicians completed the survey, representing an individual physician response rate of 7.7% and VISN response rate of 18 out of 18 (100%). We identified several areas of IBD care where GIs and PCPs reported discomfort including medication prescribing, treatment strategies, and special populations. Further, variability in access to IBD services and awareness of the availability of IBD-targeted medications and laboratory tests was common. This survey also highlights the frequency with which PCPs were identified among the highest volume IBD providers in their facility.CONCLUSIONS:
Variation in GIs' and PCPs' comfort with IBD treatment and access to IBD resources is common and needs to be considered in leveraging virtual care and educational programs and managing the expansion of IBD support and resources within VA.
Texte intégral:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Base de données:
MEDLINE
Langue:
En
Journal:
Dig Dis Sci
Année:
2024
Type de document:
Article
Pays d'affiliation:
États-Unis d'Amérique