New UAB study finds Patient Engagement Technology decreases Hospital Length of Stay

Since 2017, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Health System has offered SeamlessMD to its patients undergoing a variety of surgeries, including for Colorectal Surgery (patients needing an ileostomy included). Recently, the team published a study revealing “Ileostomy Patients Using Patient Engagement Technology Experience Decreased Length of Stay.” The study, published in the Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, discusses the benefits of adopting Patient Engagement Technology (PET) for patients undergoing colorectal surgery – particularly patients requiring the construction of a new ileostomy. Ileostomy patients are more susceptible to a longer hospital Length of Stay (LOS) and experience more readmissions compared to other colorectal procedures, with readmission rates as high as 29%.

PET platforms like SeamlessMD provide patients with comprehensive education before and after surgery. As such, researchers hypothesized that this might be a key contributing factor to better patient self-management and perioperative care, leading to decreased LOS without increasing readmissions. Here are the key results from the study:

• Patients undergoing Colorectal Surgery with an ileostomy were categorized into 3 groups:
  a. Patients who did not use PET
  b. Patients who used PET
  c. Patients who had surgery prior to the hospital implementing PET‍
• Median LOS was 2 days lower for patients who used PET (SeamlessMD) with no significant difference in readmission or ED visits;
• Being in the PET group was an independent predictor of shorter LOS;
• Predictors of longer LOS included: neoplasm diagnosis (relative to IBD), Black race (relative to White race), and hypertension;
• There are potential disparities (racial/ethnic) in access to a smartphone/tablet/computer and the use of technology amongst specific groups (Side note: UAB also studied the Disparities in Perioperative Use of PET)
  

The results of this study reveal the significant impact of using PET for more effective and efficient delivery of patient education, improving perioperative care of ileostomy patients.

Check out the full study here in the Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery.