DICA insights improve results for a great variety of clinical conditions
The challenge
DICA’s first registry started in 2009 and was initiated by a group of GE surgeons, part of the Dutch Association of Surgeons (Nederlandse Vereniging voor Heelkunde, NVvH). They embarked on a quest to learn about best practices in colorectal cancer surgery, in order to raise the overall quality of care. They wanted to identify clear-cut areas for improvement in individual hospitals and reduce variation among them. Clinical results would be compiled and published, making a lasting contribution to scientific learning in the field of colorectal cancer surgery.
“We wanted to get clarity on the performance for individual hospitals while advancing the quality of care in the Netherlands as a whole. ”
Eric Hans Eddes, Director DICA (Dutch Institute for Clinical Auditing)
About the client
The Dutch Institute for Clinical Auditing (DICA) has developed a blueprint and methodology for clinical registries and benchmarking between healthcare providers. DICA facilitates national clinical registries on >20 medical conditions in a wide range of diseases. In addition, DICA collaborates with doctors, patients, and insurers, to continuously improve healthcare by fostering learning cycles and increasing the transparency of care delivered.
The solution
DICA established a partnership with MRDM (part of LOGEX) to build a robust benchmarking platform. MRDM specializes in collecting, processing, and distributing data and information on clinical outcomes, where DICA covers the methodology.
DICA and MRDM gradually developed a robust benchmark platform in the last ten years, with the colorectal cancer surgery registry as a tipping point. The platform shows the performance of healthcare institutes relative to their peers, based on standard KPIs developed by medical associations that DICA methodologically supports.
The platform currently contains
35+
Medical conditions
1m+
Registered patients
150
Providers that participate
~500
Quality & outcome indicators
Bringing clarity to clinical performance, with measurable results
MRDM’s benchmarking platform supports short improvement cycles, empowering providers and clinical audit boards with up-to-date information and access to best practices. Advanced filtering options enable the hospitals to benchmark indicators per specific patient profile, thus realising maximum improvement potential. Users can update data on a daily basis. When requested by participants, the results can be safely shared with other stakeholders (patient organisations, research, payers, etc.)
In addition to weekly updates on clinical performance, DICA publishes an annual report and annual cycles on governed external transparency. With the benchmarking platform in place, the providers can now zero in on different opportunities for improvement and take action to address them. Conditions for which the platform is currently used include oncology, anesthesiology, diabetes, other internal medicine, surgery (treatment of obesity, breast implants, pediatric surgery), stroke, cataract, etc.
Since the rollout, DICA registries have measured and recorded:
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52% lower mortality and 29% fewer severe complications after colorectal cancer surgery
history
32-minute reduction in time between diagnosis and treatment (door-to-groin-time reduced from 87 to 55 minutes)
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The median survival of melanoma patients that have received systemic therapy increased from 12 to 22 months within six years
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Increase from 63% to 74,5% in breast-contour-preserving treatments in breast cancer
insights
Radiotherapy before gastrointestinal cancer surgery appeared unnecessary for 800 patients. Protocols have changed accordingly
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9% reduction of costs of colorectal cancer surgeries