Observational Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Nov 26, 2022; 10(33): 12184-12199
Published online Nov 26, 2022. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i33.12184
Quality of care in patients with inflammatory bowel disease from a public health center in Brazil
Debora Mayumi Takamune, Giovana Signorelli Astolfi Cury, Giulia Ferrás, Giedre Soares Prates Herrerias, Adriana Rivera, Jaqueline Ribeiro Barros, Julio Pinheiro Baima, Rogerio Saad-Hossne, Ligia Yukie Sassaki
Debora Mayumi Takamune, Giovana Signorelli Astolfi Cury, Giulia Ferrás, Giedre Soares Prates Herrerias, Jaqueline Ribeiro Barros, Julio Pinheiro Baima, Ligia Yukie Sassaki, Department of Internal Medicine, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Medical School, Botucatu 18618686, São Paulo, Brazil
Adriana Rivera, Research Unit, Virgen Macarena University Hospital, Seville 41009, Spain
Julio Pinheiro Baima, Department of Medicine, Nove de Julho University, Bauru 17011-102, São Paulo, Brazil
Rogerio Saad-Hossne, Department of Surgery, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Medical School, Botucatu 18618686, São Paulo, Brazil
Author contributions: Takamune DM, Cury GSA, Ferrás G, Herrerias GSP, Rivera A, Barros JR, Baima JP, Saad-Hossne R, and Sassaki LY contributed to the conception and design of the study, the acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data, drafting the article, and revising it critically for important intellectual content and approving the final version to be submitted; Rivera A had substantial contributions to interpretation of data, revising it critically for important intellectual content and final approval of the version.
Supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior-Brasil (CAPES), No. code 001; and São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), No. 2018/05571-0 and No. 2018/05705-6.
Institutional review board statement: The study was approved by the Local Research Ethics Committee (Approval No. CAAE: 85661018.0.0000.5411).
Informed consent statement: All participants received explanations about the study objectives and expected results, having been enrolled in the study only after signing the informed consent form.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflicts of interests to declare regarding the present work.
Data sharing statement: The datasets, including the redacted study protocol, redacted statistical analysis plan, and individual participants’ data supporting the results reported in this article, will be made available within three months from initial request to researchers who provide a methodologically sound proposal. The data will be provided after its de-identification, in compliance with applicable privacy laws, data protection and requirements for consent and anonymization.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Ligia Yukie Sassaki, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Full Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, São Paulo State University (Unesp), Medical School, Rubião Junior, Botucatu 18618686, São Paulo, Brazil. ligia.sassaki@unesp.br
Received: July 20, 2022
Peer-review started: July 20, 2022
First decision: September 25, 2022
Revised: October 14, 2022
Accepted: October 24, 2022
Article in press: October 24, 2022
Published online: November 26, 2022
Processing time: 126 Days and 9.4 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are immune-mediated diseases that compromises the patient’s quality of life. Quality of care (QoC) is of paramount importance to ensure adherence to medical treatment and to achieve treatment success.

Research motivation

QoC assessment is a useful tool to detect the positive and negative aspects of the care provided, providing improvements in the quality of the center. Quality metrics are important for standardizing practice in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) centers.

Research objectives

The aim of the present study was to assess patients’ self-reported QoC, using the QoC Through the Eyes of Patients with IBD (QUOTE-IBD) questionnaire, in a public Brazilian IBD reference center.

Research methods

An observational study was conducted, with the inclusion of 133 patients with IBD. Clinical evaluations assessed disease activity, medication in use, quality of life, and presence of anxiety and depression.

Research results

According to the QUOTE-IBD questionnaire, 51.88% of the patients rated the QoC offered by the IBD center as satisfactory. The best scores were related with categories such as autonomy, courtesy and cost (of treatment). The categories with the lowest scores were accommodation, continuity of care and accessibility. Patients with Crohn’s disease had higher satisfaction rates compared to patients with ulcerative colitis, showing that greater contact with the team conveys security and a greater feeling of welcoming to the patient.

Research conclusions

This is the first study that evaluated the care offered to patients with IBD in Brazil and Latin America. Future studies exploring this issue should be encouraged. Other parameters can be included in this assessment, such as the composition of the IBD team, the presence of a multidisciplinary team, the qualification of the team, as well as data regarding the effectiveness of the treatment, rates of complications and surgeries, and measures of disease outcomes.

Research perspectives

The assessment of the QoC provided by a service provider is essential to improvements in this area. Future studies in the care provided to patients with IBD should be encouraged.