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Publication Briefs

PACT Implementation Associated with Potential Short-Term Improvement in Quality of Follow-Up for Certain Diagnostic Tests


BACKGROUND:

  • PACT implementation was associated with a potential short-term improvement in the quality of follow-up for certain test results.
  • Better PACT implementation was associated with a reduction in potentially missed timely follow-ups for urinalysis for evaluation of bladder cancer and anemia for evaluating colorectal cancer.
  • During the initial years (2010–2012) of PACT implementation, the percent of potentially missed timely follow-ups decreased for four of the six diagnostic tests studied (3–7 percentage points for urinalysis, 12–14 percentage points for mammograms, 19–22 percentage points for fecal diagnostic tests, and 6–13 percentage points for anemia tests), with no statistically significant changes for Alpha-fetoprotein tests for liver cancer and lung cancer imaging. However, the beneficial reductions were not sustained over time.

    • FINDINGS:

    • Additional multifaceted and sustained interventions to reduce missed test result follow-up are required to prevent care delays.

    IMPLICATIONS:

    • Additional multifaceted and sustained interventions to reduce missed test result follow-up are required to prevent care delays.

    LIMITATIONS:

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