Avalere Oversees Development of Care Referral Pathway for Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Summary

Avalere supports development of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Care Referral Pathway, which aims to coordinate care and optimize referral practices among different clinicians that treat patients with IBD.

In December 2017, Avalere partnered with the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) to develop the IBD Care Referral Pathway. As noted in the article, “IBD is a challenging condition for patients to manage and is sufficiently complex as to require care from multiple specialists and primary care practitioners.” Patient care for IBD is often fragmented, and many individuals experience delays in diagnosis.

Given the limited guidance around care coordination for the treatment of IBD, the pathway offers direction on the identification of adult patients with IBD for gastroenterology, primary care, and emergency department providers. The pathway also promotes more comprehensive care for IBD through attention to other needed services, such as mental health and nutrition. The pathway includes guidance for clinicians on:

Symptoms to be aware of during patient presentation that trigger use of the pathway
Assessment and severity of patient characteristics
Ordering inflammation tests and conducting other health screenings
Requesting consultations or referral of patients

The pathway does not provide treatment recommendations; rather it provides guidance to clinicians on initiating referrals for the most common presentations of IBD.

This guidance was developed by a working group comprised of gastroenterologists, a primary care physician, a mental/behavioral health practitioner, a registered dietitian nutritionist, a critical care specialist, a nurse practitioner, a physician group representative, and a patient advocacy representative. The resulting pathway is supported by the literature and reflects the expert opinion of the convened workgroup, which participated in an in-person meeting and regular teleconferences facilitated by Avalere through July 2018.

The pathway was published in Gastroenterology. The pathway is being piloted for usability and acceptance among clinicians across 5 different practice sites in Baton Rouge, LA, from April to November 2019.

To learn more about Avalere’s work in the care pathway space, connect with us.

Avalere developed the pathway in partnership with the AGA. Financial support for this work was provided by AbbVie.