“Best practice” in inflammatory bowel disease: an international survey and audit

Background: An observational study was conducted at eight university and four district hospitals in eight countries collaborating in clinical and epidemiological research in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) to compare European health care facilities and to define current “best practice” with regard...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	European journal of internal medicine Vol. 15; no. 2; pp. 113 - 120
Main Authors:	van der Eijk, Ingrid, Verheggen, Frank W, Russel, Maurice G, Buckley, Martin, Katsanos, Kostas, Munkholm, Pia, Engdahl, Ingemar, Politi, Patrizia, Odes, Selwyn, Fossen, Jan, Stockbrügger, Reinhold W
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01-04-2004
Subjects:	Benchmarking Best practice analysis Chronic disease Europe Patient care Peer review Quality management Chronic disease Europe Patient care Benchmarking Peer review Best practice analysis Quality management
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Summary:	Background: An observational study was conducted at eight university and four district hospitals in eight countries collaborating in clinical and epidemiological research in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) to compare European health care facilities and to define current “best practice” with regard to IBD. Methods: The approach used in this multi-national survey was unique. Existing quality norms, developed for total hospital care by a specialized organization, were restricted to IBD-specific care and adapted to the frame of reference of the study group. In each center, these norms were surveyed by means of questionnaires and professional audits in all participating centers. The collected data were reported to the center, compared to data from other hospitals, and used to benchmark. Group consensus was reached with regard to defining current “best practice”. Results: The observations in each center involved patient-oriented processes, technical and patient safety, and quality of the medical standard. Several findings could be directly implemented to improve IBD care in another hospital (benchmarks). These included a confidential relationship between health care worker(s) and patients, and availability of patient data. Conclusions: The observed benchmarks, in combination with other subjectively chosen “positive” procedures, have been defined as current “best practice in IBD”, representing practical guidelines towards better quality of care in IBD.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	0953-6205 1879-0828
DOI:	10.1016/j.ejim.2004.01.016