Wait Times for Women With Abnormal Uterine Bleeding in South-Western Ontario |
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Authors: | Jennifer N. Bondy Amardeep Thind Moira Stewart Doug Manuel Tom Freeman |
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Affiliation: | 1. Schulich School of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London ON;2. Canada Research Chair in Health Services Research, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Department of Family Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London ON;3. Centre for Studies in Family Medicine, Department of Family Medicine, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, The University of Western Ontario, London ON;4. The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Department of Family Medicine, Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine, the University of Ottawa, Ottawa ON;5. Department of Family Medicine, The University of Western Ontario, London ON;1. Epilepsy Center, University Hospital Freiburg, Germany;2. Department of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery, University Hospital Freiburg, Germany;3. Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Freiburg, Germany |
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Abstract: | ObjectiveWomen referred to an obstetrician-gynaecologist because of abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) should be seen within 12 weeks, according to the benchmarks recommended for medically acceptable wait times established by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. Our study aimed to determine the proportion of patients having wait times that meet this recommendation, and to understand patient-level sources of variation in these waits.MethodsWe performed a secondary analysis of data from the Delivering Primary Healthcare Information (DELPHI) project database. Electronic medical record data from 10 family practices across south-western Ontario were used to study AUB wait times.ResultsOver a 30-month period, 223 referrals were made to obstetrician-gynaecologists because of AUB. The mean wait time for initial assessment was 70.4 days (median = 51 days); the range among referring practices varied from 36 to 111 days. Seventy-one percent of women were seen by the obstetrician-gynaecologist within the recommended time of 12 weeks or less. Multi-level regression analysis indicated that older patients were more likely to have shorter waits. The intraclass correlation was 0.256, indicating that nearly a quarter of the variation in wait time was explained at the practice level.ConclusionNearly 30% of women referred to specialists because of AUB wait longer than the period of time recommended by the SOGC, with younger women more likely to wait longer. This difference may be due to the perception of an increased risk of malignancy in older women. Future research on correlates of AUB wait times should take factors such as severity and prior family physician work up into account. |
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