A0622 - After Visit Summary as an Intervention to Increase Patient Recall of Treatment Information in Telemedicine and In-Person Settings

Isabella Sutherland, BS¹, Shabana Pasha, MD², Suryakanth Gurudu, MD², Michael Crowell, PhD², Christina Ha, MD², Gassan Kassim, MD², Thomas Hollmann, PhD³, Tafi Vista, MHA, BSN, RN⁴, Laurie Wilshusen, MA, BA⁵, Thomas Welch, MHA⁵, Jonathan A. Leighton, MD^2
1University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine, Duluth, MN; ²Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, AZ; ³Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ; ⁴Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL; ⁵Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Introduction: Estimates of patient adherence to treatment plan are low, and one contributor is poor recall of treatment plan and follow-up. The After Visit Summary (AVS) is a document that summarizes a patient’s visit content and their treatment plan instructions, yet it is not universally utilized across health systems.

Aims: To evaluate the impact of the method of AVS delivery (hard copy vs patient portal) and visit modality (telemedicine vs in-person) on Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients’ ability to recall their treatment plan.

Methods: New IBD patients presenting to a tertiary center were randomized into three groups based on visit type and mode of AVS delivery (Figure 1). Clinical visits were standardized to include treatment recommendations and lifestyle modifications. The survey was delivered to each patient electronically 2 weeks following their visit. It included 8 questions assessing patient confidence in the recall of the visit discussion, a question regarding whether they needed to call back with questions, and a question asking what would have made it easier for them to understand their treatment plan. A mean “recall score” was calculated from each patient’s response to the first 8 questions. These scores were compared between groups for each question and overall.

Results: Of 81 patients, 29 surveys were completed (35.8%). As shown in Table 1, no significant differences in recall scores were indicated. Only three respondents reported that they had to call back to ask a follow up question. The open-ended responses to question 10 (“what would have made it easier to understand your treatment plan?”) were centered around finances, insurance, and scheduling, as opposed to specific treatment information or discussion.

Discussion: Overall self-reported recall and confidence in managing one’s own care was high among patients regardless of visit type or mode of AVS delivery, underscoring the importance of clear and effective communication of care plans during patient visits. Limitations of this study include small sample size, patient inaccuracy in self-assessment of recall, and tertiary care referral bias as extended visit times for new patient encounters may impact generalizability of results. However, the AVS likely remains an effective tool to improve recall for IBD patients with complex clinical care plans. Additional investigations exploring patient adherence to IBD care plans based on recall of recommendations may be useful to measure the impact of AVS on longer term care.




Disclosures:


Isabella Sutherland, BS¹, Shabana Pasha, MD², Suryakanth Gurudu, MD², Michael Crowell, PhD², Christina Ha, MD², Gassan Kassim, MD², Thomas Hollmann, PhD³, Tafi Vista, MHA, BSN, RN⁴, Laurie Wilshusen, MA, BA⁵, Thomas Welch, MHA⁵, Jonathan A. Leighton, MD². A0622 - After Visit Summary as an Intervention to Increase Patient Recall of Treatment Information in Telemedicine and In-Person Settings, ACG 2022 Annual Scientific Meeting Abstracts. Charlotte, NC: American College of Gastroenterology.