Evaluation of Hospital Readmission Rate Dependent on Post-Operative Follow-Up Procedure

Postoperative Complications

This study is a randomized clinical trial among colorectal surgery patients that will compare the efficacy of two different discharge protocols - current standard of care follow-up at two weeks post-op versus a 3-day phone call intervention. The overall aim of the study is to identify areas of improvement for discharging and following patients within 30 days of colorectal surgery.

This study will be a prospective clinical trial, in which colorectal surgery patients will be randomly assigned to a control or experimental group. Patients will be consented and randomized prior to discharge.The control group will be discharged with standard of care follow-up instructions described by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (OSUWMC), and scheduled to come in for a standard follow-up clinic visit within 2-3 weeks. The experimental group will also be scheduled for a 2-3 week post-op follow-up appointment, but will also receive a phone call 3-days post procedure. During this phone call, the patient will be asked questions using a study-specific questionnaire that is based on the most frequent indications for readmission after colorectal surgery. Based on the responses, patients will be advised to maintain the scheduled 2-3 week post-op appointment, visit the clinic within 48 hours, or go to the Emergency Department immediately. To determine if patients had visited an ED or been readmitted to a hospital within 30 days of colorectal surgery, both the standard of care and intervention groups will receive a phone call 30-days post-discharge. At this time we will also conduct the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey to measure patient satisfaction.

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