IBD2020 global forum: results of an international patient survey on quality of care

Intest Res. 2018 Oct;16(4):537-545. doi: 10.5217/ir.2018.00041. Epub 2018 Oct 10.

Abstract

Background/aims: IBD2020 is a global forum for standards of care in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of the IBD2020 survey was to identify and describe variations in quality care of IBD.

Methods: Patients with IBD from Finland, Italy, France, Canada, Germany, UK, Spain and Sweden were surveyed during 2013 to 2014, covering: disease characteristics; impact on life and work; organization and perceived quality of care.

Results: Seven thousand five hundred and seven patients participated (median age, 39 years [range, 10-103 years]; 2,354 male [31.4%]), including 4,097 (54.6%) with Crohn's disease (CD) and 3,410 (45.4%) with ulcerative colitis (UC). Median time from symptom onset to diagnosis was 1 year for both CD (range, 0-47 years) and UC (range, 0-46 years), with no clear evidence of improvement in diagnostic delay over the preceding 24 years. Half of the patients (3,429; 50.0%) rated their care as "excellent" or "very good," with similar results for CD and UC across countries. Five factors were significantly (P<0.01) associated with perceived good quality of care: quality of specialist communication; review consultation being long enough; failure to share information; no access to a dietician; speed of advice.

Conclusions: The IBD2020 survey has highlighted areas related to quality of care of IBD from the patients' perspective, with scope for improvement.

Keywords: Colitis, ulcerative; Crohn disease; Inflammatory bowel disease; Quality of health care; Surveys and questionnaires.

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