TY - JOUR
T1 - Association of physicians' accuracy in recording with quality of care in cardiovascular medicine
AU - Giorda, Carlo Bruno
AU - Guida, Piero
AU - Avogaro, Angelo
AU - Cortese, Claudio
AU - Mureddu, Gian Francesco
AU - Corsini, Alberto
AU - Comaschi, Marco Antonio
AU - Manzato, Enzo
AU - Volpe, Massimo
AU - Zito, Giovanni Battista
AU - Medea, Gerardo
AU - Ventriglia, Giuseppe
AU - Titta, Giulio
AU - Riccardi, Gabriele
PY - 2009/12
Y1 - 2009/12
N2 - Background: Physicians' adherence to cardiovascular (CV) guidelines has been found to be poor. In this regard, accuracy in keeping medical records could play an important role. This study was devised to describe which data are present in medical records from a large sample of physicians and to investigate the association and the link between completeness in recording and clinical appropriateness. Methods The data extracted from medical records of 1078 doctors (general practitioners, cardiologists, and diabetologists) were analyzed, with a focus on CV prevention. The percentage of recorded data of several CV clinical variables was calculated. A multivariate analysis was performed to investigate the association between doctors' and patients' characteristics and different patterns in recording. Finally, the completeness in recording was calculated with a score and plotted against three indicators of appropriateness. Results: The only risk factor that achieved a good standard of registration was blood pressure (89%). Low-density lipoprotein and waist circumference were largely under-recorded, whereas lifestyle data collection was almost negligible. Age, specialization, and use of electronic records increase the accuracy in recording. When one CV risk factor was predominant, the probability of having other risk factors recorded was reduced. A significant increase in the proportion of patients treated according to guidelines was found in doctors who were more accurate in recording. Conclusion: A link exists between accuracy in recording with both quality of care and adherence to guidelines. Specific training of all doctors in this field should be considered.
AB - Background: Physicians' adherence to cardiovascular (CV) guidelines has been found to be poor. In this regard, accuracy in keeping medical records could play an important role. This study was devised to describe which data are present in medical records from a large sample of physicians and to investigate the association and the link between completeness in recording and clinical appropriateness. Methods The data extracted from medical records of 1078 doctors (general practitioners, cardiologists, and diabetologists) were analyzed, with a focus on CV prevention. The percentage of recorded data of several CV clinical variables was calculated. A multivariate analysis was performed to investigate the association between doctors' and patients' characteristics and different patterns in recording. Finally, the completeness in recording was calculated with a score and plotted against three indicators of appropriateness. Results: The only risk factor that achieved a good standard of registration was blood pressure (89%). Low-density lipoprotein and waist circumference were largely under-recorded, whereas lifestyle data collection was almost negligible. Age, specialization, and use of electronic records increase the accuracy in recording. When one CV risk factor was predominant, the probability of having other risk factors recorded was reduced. A significant increase in the proportion of patients treated according to guidelines was found in doctors who were more accurate in recording. Conclusion: A link exists between accuracy in recording with both quality of care and adherence to guidelines. Specific training of all doctors in this field should be considered.
KW - Cardiovascular risk management
KW - Clinical appropriateness
KW - Medical records
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=74249088852&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=74249088852&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1097/HJR.0b013e3283317c3f
DO - 10.1097/HJR.0b013e3283317c3f
M3 - Article
C2 - 19770664
AN - SCOPUS:74249088852
VL - 16
SP - 722
EP - 728
JO - European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation
JF - European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation
SN - 1741-8267
IS - 6
ER -