Victoria Ivankovic, Megan Delisle, Dawn Stacey, Jad Abou-Khalil, Fady Balaa, Kimberly A Bertens, Brittany Dingley, Guillaume Martel, Kristen McAlpine, Carolyn Nessim, Shaheer Tadros, Marc Carrier, Rebecca C Auer
{"title":"Testing of a risk-stratified patient decision aid to facilitate shared decision-making for extended postoperative thromboprophylaxis after major abdominal surgery for cancer.","authors":"Victoria Ivankovic, Megan Delisle, Dawn Stacey, Jad Abou-Khalil, Fady Balaa, Kimberly A Bertens, Brittany Dingley, Guillaume Martel, Kristen McAlpine, Carolyn Nessim, Shaheer Tadros, Marc Carrier, Rebecca C Auer","doi":"10.1503/cjs.014722","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.014722","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Use of extended pharmacologic thromboprophylaxis after major abdominopelvic cancer surgery should depend on best-available scientific evidence and patients' informed preferences. We developed a risk-stratified patient decision aid to facilitate shared decision-making and sought to evaluate its effect on decision-making quality regarding use of extended thromboprophylaxis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We enrolled patients undergoing major abdominopelvic cancer surgery at an academic tertiary care centre in this pre-post study. We evaluated change in decisional conflict, readiness to decide, decision-making confidence, and change in patient knowledge. Participants were provided the appropriate risk-stratified decision aid (according to their Caprini score) in either the preoperative or postoperative setting. A sample size calculation determined that we required 17 patients to demonstrate whether the decision aid meaningfully reduced decisional conflict. We used the Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed ranks test for interval scaled measures.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We included 17 participants. The decision aid significantly reduced decisional conflict (median decisional conflict score 2.37 [range 1.00-3.81] v. 1.3 [range 1.00-3.25], <i>p</i> < 0.01). With the decision aid, participants had high confidence (median 86.4 [range 15.91-100]) and felt highly prepared to make a decision (median 90 [range 55-100]). Median knowledge scores increased from 50% (range 0%-100%) to 75% (range 25%-100%).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our risk-stratified, evidence-based decision aid on extended thromboprophylaxis after major abdominopelvic surgery significantly improved decision-making quality. Further research is needed to evaluate the usability and feasibility of this decision aid in the perioperative setting.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11349336/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142079282","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Social media in surgery: the good, the bad, and the ugly.","authors":"Chad G Ball, Edward J Harvey, Ameer Farooq","doi":"10.1503/cjs.008724","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.008724","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11349332/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142079281","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Samuel Savard, Lauren V Ready, Prosanta Mondal, Niroshan Sothilingam, Phil Davis
{"title":"A comparison of trauma patients in urban and rural areas presenting to a Canadian tertiary care centre.","authors":"Samuel Savard, Lauren V Ready, Prosanta Mondal, Niroshan Sothilingam, Phil Davis","doi":"10.1503/cjs.013623","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.013623","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The aim of our work was to examine differences between trauma patients in rural and urban areas who presented to a tertiary trauma centre in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We identified a historical cohort of all level 1 trauma activations presenting to Royal University Hospital (RUH) from April 1, 2020, to March 31, 2022. We divided the cohort into 2 groups (urban and rural), according to the trauma location. The primary outcome of interest was 30-day mortality. Secondary outcomes of interest were hospital length of stay, readmission to hospital within 30 days of discharge, and complication rate.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Trauma patients in rural areas were younger (34.1 v. 37 yr; <i>p</i> = 0.002) and more likely to be male (80.3% v. 74.4%; <i>p</i> = 0.040), with higher Injury Severity Scores (12.3 v. 8.3; <i>p</i> < 0.0001). Trauma patients in urban areas were more likely to sustain penetrating trauma (42.5% v. 28.5%; <i>p</i> < 0.0001). We saw no differences in morbidity and mortality between the 2 groups, but the rural trauma group had longer median lengths of stay (5 v. 3 d; <i>p</i> < 0.0007).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Although we identified key differences in patient demographics, injury type, and injury severity, outcomes were largely similar between the urban and rural trauma groups. This finding contradicts comparable studies within Canada and the United States, a difference that may be attributable to the lack of inclusion of prehospital mortality in the rural trauma group. The longer length of stay in trauma patients from rural areas may be attributed to disposition challenges for patients who live remotely.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11349335/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142079279","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Réseaux sociaux et chirurgie : le bon, la brute et le truand.","authors":"Chad G Ball, Edward J Harvey, Ameer Farooq","doi":"10.1503/cjs.009524","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.009524","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11349333/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142079280","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Correction to: \"Comparison of a validated decision-support tool to a standard of care triage system for knee osteoarthritis assessment: a proof-of-concept study\".","authors":"","doi":"10.1503/cjs.006724","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.006724","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11300032/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141874256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Selective centralized booking as a low-cost alternative to centralized referral.","authors":"Taryn Zabolotniuk, Chad Rideout, Hamish Hwang","doi":"10.1503/cjs.002622","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.002622","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>SummaryCentralized referral systems have been successfully implemented to shorten and equalize surgical wait times; however, ongoing expenses make sustaining these projects challenging. We trialed a low-cost centralized booking project for hernia surgery in a community hospital from July to November 2019. Eligible patients (i.e., those with visible or palpable inguinal or umbilical hernias who were agreeable to an open mesh repair) were booked with the first available surgeon after initial consultation. Centrally booked patients with either inguinal or umbilical hernias waited a mean of 82 (standard deviation [SD] 32) and 80 (SD 66) days, respectively, while those who did not use the centralized system waited 137 (SD 89) and 181 (SD 92) days, respectively. Centralized booking increased operating room utilization as a larger pool of patients was available to call when last-minute cancellation occurred; centralized booking also effectively equalized wait-lists among 6 surgeons. Selective centralized booking is a promising concept that led to more efficient utilization of available operating room time with a significant decrease in wait times; this system could potentially improve access for all patients awaiting general surgery without requiring additional funding.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11300035/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141874257","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alicia Rosenzveig, Amer Jarrar, Tommy Stuleanu, Joseph Mamazza, Amy Neville, Caolan Walsh, Patrick B Murphy, Nicole Kolozsvari
{"title":"A lay of the land: a description of academic acute care surgery models in Canada.","authors":"Alicia Rosenzveig, Amer Jarrar, Tommy Stuleanu, Joseph Mamazza, Amy Neville, Caolan Walsh, Patrick B Murphy, Nicole Kolozsvari","doi":"10.1503/cjs.000724","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.000724","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Patients who require emergency general surgery (EGS) are at a substantially higher risk for perioperative morbidity and mortality than patients undergoing elective general surgery. The acute care surgery (ACS) model has been shown to improve EGS patient outcomes and cost-effectiveness. A recent systematic review has shown extensive heterogeneity in the structure of ACS models worldwide. The objective of this study was to describe the current landscape of ACS models in academic centres across Canada.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We sent an online questionnaire to the 18 academic centres in Canada. The lead ACS physicians from each institution completed the questionnaire, describing the structure of their ACS models.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In total, 16 institutions responded, all of which reported having ACS models, with a total of 29 ACS services described. All services had resident coverage. Of the 29, 18 (62%) had dedicated allied health care staff. The staff surgeon was free from elective duties while covering ACS in 17/29 (59%) services. More than half (15/29; 52%) of the services described protected ACS operating room time, but only 7/15 (47%) had a dedicated ACS room all 5 weekdays. Four of 29 services (14%) had no protected ACS operating room time. Only 1/16 (6%) institutions reported a mandate to conduct ACS research, while 12/16 (75%) found ACS research difficult, owing to lack of resources.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>We saw large variations in the structure of ACS models in academic centres in Canada. The components of ACS models that are most important to patient outcomes remain poorly defined. Future research will focus on defining the necessary cornerstones of ACS models.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11300033/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141874255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Olawale A Sogbein, Aaron G Chen, J Andrew McClure, Jennifer Reid, Blayne Welk, Brent A Lanting, Ryan M Degen
{"title":"Unnecessary interventions for the management of hip osteoarthritis: a population-based cohort study.","authors":"Olawale A Sogbein, Aaron G Chen, J Andrew McClure, Jennifer Reid, Blayne Welk, Brent A Lanting, Ryan M Degen","doi":"10.1503/cjs.001624","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.001624","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Patients aged 40-60 years who require total hip arthroplasty (THA) often first receive unindicated hip arthroscopy or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Our objective was to identify potentially inappropriate resource utilization before THA, specifically reporting on the proportion of patients aged 40-60 years who underwent hip arthroscopy or MRI in the year before THA.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a retrospective, population-based study at the provincial level. We retrieved data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). We included all Ontario residents who underwent an elective, primary THA for osteoarthritis between Apr. 1, 2004, and Mar. 31, 2016. We identified the rates and timing of patients who underwent an MRI or hip arthroscopy before their index THA.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The percentage of patients who underwent an MRI before THA increased significantly over the study period, from 8.7% in 2004 to 23.8% in 2015. There was also a significant but variable trend in the percentage of patients who underwent a hip arthroscopy before THA.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our results demonstrate a high, gradually increasing proportion of patients who received a hip MRI and a low but increasing proportion of patients who received hip arthroscopy in close proximity to THA. Multidisciplinary collaboration may improve knowledge translation and help reduce the rate of clinically unnecessary diagnostic and therapeutic interventions in this population of patients who require THA.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11300034/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141874258","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Streamlining lung cancer management in Nova Scotia amid COVID-19: pooled triaging for expedited curative-intent oncologic surgery.","authors":"Pooja Patel, Rheann Brownstone, Brianne Cruickshank, Connor Garagan, Daria Manos, Daniel French, Alison Wallace, Madelaine Plourde","doi":"10.1503/cjs.013023","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.013023","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the diagnosis and management of lung cancer in Canada is not fully understood. We sought to quantify the provincial volume of diagnostic imaging, thoracic surgeon referrals, time to surgery after referral, and pathologic staging for curative surgery in the context of the pandemic, as well as explore the effect of a pooled patient model, which was implemented to prioritize surgeries for lung cancer and mitigate the effects of the pandemic.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent diagnostic imaging in Nova Scotia and were subsequently referred to a thoracic surgeon at the province's only tertiary care centre for surgical management of their primary lung cancer before (Mar. 1, 2019, to Feb. 29, 2020) and during (Mar. 1, 2020, to Feb. 28, 2021) the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a survey to capture the patient and surgeon experience with a pooled patient model of managing surgical oncology cases.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Compared with the pre-COVID-19 period, the overall volume of chest radiography and chest computed tomography decreased by 30.9% (<i>p</i> < 0.001) and 18.7% (<i>p</i> = 0.002), respectively, in the COVID-19 period. Thoracic surgeon referrals, operative approach, extent of resection, length of hospital stay, and pathologic staging did not significantly differ. Time from referral to surgery was significantly shorter during the COVID-19 period (mean 196.8 d v. 157.9 d, <i>p</i> = 0.04). A pooled patient approach contributed to positive patient satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with reductions in rates of diagnostic imaging and referrals to thoracic surgeons for management of pulmonary cancer. A pooled patient model was used to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on lung cancer management and was positively received by patients. An extended study period is needed to determine the full effect of this redistribution of resources.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11233170/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141533718","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Subin Punnen, Shayda Taheri, Leo Chen, Tracy Scott, Ahmer Karimuddin
{"title":"Comparing resident operative volumes for routine general surgery cases at academic, urban community, and rural training sites.","authors":"Subin Punnen, Shayda Taheri, Leo Chen, Tracy Scott, Ahmer Karimuddin","doi":"10.1503/cjs.005323","DOIUrl":"10.1503/cjs.005323","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Surgical training traditionally took place at academic centres, but changed to incorporate community and rural hospitals. As little data exist comparing resident case volumes between these locations, the objective of this study was to determine variations in these volumes for routine general surgery procedures.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analyzed senior resident case logs from 2009 to 2019 from a general surgery residency program. We classified training centres as academic, community, and rural. Cases included appendectomy, cholecystectomy, hernia repair, bowel resection, adhesiolysis, and stoma formation or reversal. We matched procedures to blocks based on date of case and compared groups using a Poisson mixed-methods model and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We included 85 residents and 28 532 cases. Postgraduate year (PGY) 3 residents at academic sites performed 10.9 (95% CI 10.1-11.6) cases per block, which was fewer than 14.7 (95% CI 13.6-15.9) at community and 15.3 (95% CI 14.2-16.5) at rural sites. Fourth-year residents (PGY4) showed a greater difference, with academic residents performing 8.7 (95% CI 8.0-9.3) cases per block compared with 23.7 (95% CI 22.1-25.4) in the community and 25.6 (95% CI 23.6-27.9) at rural sites. This difference continued in PGY5, with academic residents performing 8.3 (95% CI 7.3-9.3) cases per block, compared with 18.9 (95% CI 16.8-21.0) in the community and 14.5 (95% CI 7.0-21.9) at rural sites.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Senior residents performed fewer routine cases at academic sites than in community and rural centres. Programs can use these data to optimize scheduling for struggling residents who require exposure to routine cases, and help residents complete the requirements of a Competence by Design curriculum.</p>","PeriodicalId":9573,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Surgery","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11233171/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141533717","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}