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Background Antimicrobial stewardship programs promote the appropriate use of antimicrobial substances through the implementation of evidence-based, active and passive interventions. We analyzed the effect of a computer-assisted intervention on antimicrobial use in a tertiary care hospital. Methods Between 2011 and 2016 we introduced an electronic alert for patients being prescribed meropenem, voriconazole and caspofungin. At prescription and at day 3 of treatment, physicians were informed about the risk related to these antimicrobial substances by an electronic alert in the medical records. Physicians were invited to revoke or confirm the prescription and to contact the infectious disease (ID) team. Using interrupted time series regression, the days of therapy (DOTs) and the number of prescriptions before and after the intervention were compared. Results We counted 64,281 DOTs for 5549 prescriptions during 4100 hospital stays. Overall, the DOTs decreased continuously over time. An additional benefit of the alert could not be observed. Similarly, the number of prescriptions decreased over time, without significant effect of the intervention. When considering the three drugs separately, the alert impacted the duration (change in slope of DOTs/1000 bed days; P  = 0.0017) as well as the number of prescriptions (change in slope of prescriptions/1000 bed days; P  < 0.001) of voriconazole only. Conclusions The introduction of the alert lowered prescriptions of voriconazole only. Thus, self-stewardship alone seems to have a limited impact on electronic prescriptions of anti-infective substances. Additional measures such as face-to-face prompting with ID physicians or audit and feedback are indispensable to optimize antimicrobial use.

Background In 2013 the Swiss Diagnosis Related Groups ((Swiss)-DRG) was implemented in Intensive Care Units (ICU). Its impact on hospitalizations has not yet been examined. We compared the number of ICU admissions, according to clinical severity and referring institution, and screened whether implementation of Swiss-DRG affected admission policy, ICU length-of-stay (ICU-LOS) or ICU mortality. Methods Retrospective, single centre, cohort study conducted at the University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland between January 2009 and end of September 2013. Demographic and clinical data was retrieved from a quality assurance database. Results Admissions ( n  = 17,231) before the introduction of Swiss-DRG were used to model expected admissions after DRG, and then compared to the observed admissions. Forecasting matched observations in patients with a high clinical severity admitted from internal units and external hospitals (admitted / predicted: 709 / 703, [95% Confidence Interval (CI), 658–748] and 302 / 332, [95% CI, 269–365] respectively). In patients with low severity of disease, in-house admissions became more frequent than expected and external admission were less frequent (admitted / predicted: 1972 / 1910, [95% CI, 1898–1940] and 436 / 518, [95% CI, 482–554] respectively). Various mechanisms related to Swiss-DRG may have led to these changes. DRG could not be linked to significant changes in regard to ICU-LOS and ICU mortality. Conclusions DRG introduction had not affected ICU admissions policy, except for an increase of in-house patients with a low clinical severity of disease. DRG had neither affected ICU mortality nor ICU-LOS.

Inspired by the US Choosing Wisely , in 2016 the Swiss Society of General Internal Medicine released a list of five treatments or diagnostic tests used in the hospital and considered unnecessary based on not improving patient care and adding to health care costs. These \"Smarter Medicine\" recommendations were implemented in the Department of Internal Medicine, Uster Hospital, in August 2016. They were supported by lectures and weekly email communications. We analyzed the number of blood draws before and after implementation of the recommendation aimed at reducing blood tests. This retrospective analysis was conducted in the Department of Internal Medicine, Uster Hospital, Canton of Zurich, Switzerland. Patients hospitalized in the 3 months before and after implementation were analyzed. A total of 2023 hospitalizations were analyzed. There was a significant decrease in the number of blood draws after introduction of the recommendation: before implementation, the median number of blood draws per patient was 4 (interquartile range [IQR], 2-7); after implementation, the median was 4 (IQR, 2-6; = 0.002). Indeed, since 46% of the patients in the first group had more than four blood tests, this ratio decreased to 39% after implementation. Inappropriate blood draws may lead to anemia, patient discomfort and false-positive results. The simple and low-cost interventions used to implement \"Smarter Medicine\" have changed physician behavior by reducing the number of blood orders. These results are promising. Whether such recommendations will impact patient and clinical outcomes remains unknown; hence, further studies are needed to clarify this issue.

Purpose The growth of Singapore’s geriatric population, coupled with the rise in colorectal cancer (CRC), has increased the number of colorectal surgeries performed on elderly patients. This study aimed to compare the clinical outcomes and costs of laparoscopic versus open elective colorectal resections in elderly CRC patients over 80 years. Methods A retrospective cohort study using data from the American College of Surgeons National Surgery Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) identified patients over 80 years undergoing elective colectomy and proctectomy between 2018 and 2021. Patient demographics, length of stay (LOS), 30-day postoperative complications, and mortality rates were analysed. Cost data in Singapore dollars were obtained from the finance database. Univariate and multivariate regression models were used to determine cost drivers. The 5-year overall survival (OS) for the entire octogenarian CRC cohort with and without postoperative complications was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier curves. Results Of the 192 octogenarian CRC patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery between 2018 and 2021, 114 underwent laparoscopic resection (59.4%), while 78 underwent open surgery (40.6%). The proportion of proctectomy cases was similar between laparoscopic and open groups (24.6% vs. 23.1%, P  = 0.949). Baseline characteristics, including Charlson Comorbidity Index, albumin level, and tumour staging, were comparable between both groups. Median operative duration was 52.5 min longer in the laparoscopic group (232.5 vs. 180.0 min, P  < 0.001). Both groups had no significant differences in postoperative complications and 30-day and 1-year mortality rates. Median LOS was 6 days in the laparoscopic group compared to 9 days in the open group ( P  < 0.001). The mean total cost was 11.7% lower in the laparoscopic group (S$25,583.44 vs. S$28,970.85, P  = 0.012). Proctectomy ( P  = 0.024), postoperative pneumonia ( P  < 0.001) and urinary tract infection ( P  < 0.001), and prolonged LOS > 6 days ( P  < 0.001) were factors contributing to increased costs in the entire cohort. The 5-year OS of octogenarians with minor or major postoperative complications was significantly lower than those without complications ( P  < 0.001). Conclusion Laparoscopic resection is associated with significantly reduced overall hospitalization costs and decreased LOS compared to open resection among octogenarian CRC patients, with comparable postoperative outcomes and 30-day and 1-year mortality rates. The extended operative time and higher consumables costs from laparoscopic resection were mitigated by the decrease in other inpatient hospitalization costs, including ward accommodation, daily treatment fees, investigation costs, and rehabilitation expenditures. Comprehensive perioperative care and optimised surgical approach to mitigate the impact of postoperative complications can improve survival in elderly patients undergoing CRC resection.

Purpose In 2017, the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) was introduced in the Department of Colorectal Surgery at Singapore General Hospital as a pilot quality improvement initiative. This study aimed to examine the cost-effectiveness of NSQIP by evaluating its effects on surgical outcomes, length of stay (LOS), and costs. Methods We retrospectively reviewed patients undergoing colorectal surgery (2017–2020). Patients were divided into two cohorts: pre-NSQIP (2017–2018) and post-NSQIP (2019–2020). Outcomes evaluated were 30-day postoperative complications, LOS, and costs. Total cost-savings from NSQIP intervention’s impact on LOS were estimated using a decision model with a one-way sensitivity analysis. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to identify factors for prolonged LOS. Results 1905 patients underwent colorectal surgery, with 996 in the pre-NSQIP cohort and 909 in the post-NSQIP cohort. A significant reduction in overall postoperative complications of 4.7% was observed in the post-NSQIP cohort (36.5% vs. 31.8%, p  = 0.029). Patients in the post-NSQIP cohort had a shorter median LOS (8.0 vs. 6.0 days, p  < 0.001). The implementation of NSQIP resulted in an 8.5% decrease in prolonged LOS > 6 days ( p  < 0.001), saving S$0.31 million on LOS. Total costs per case were reduced by 20.8% following NSQIP (S$39,539.05 vs. S$31,311.93, p  < 0.001). Conclusion Implementing NSQIP has significantly reduced overall postoperative complications, LOS, and costs and achieved cost savings following colorectal surgery.