Adding Patient-reported Outcomes to the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program: Results of the First 33,842 Patients from 65 Hospitals.

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the initial set of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) and their associations with 30-day surgical outcomes. BACKGROUND:PROs provide important information that can be used to improve routine care and facilitate quality improvement. The American College of Surgeons conducted a demonstration project to capture PROs into the NSQIP to complement clinical data. METHODS:From February 2020 to March 2023, 65 hospitals collected Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System measures assessing global health, pain interference, fatigue, and physical function from patients accrued into the NSQIP. Using multivariable mixed regression, we compared the scores of patients with and without 30-day complications and further analyzed scores exceeding 1-SD worse than national benchmarks. RESULTS:Overall, 33842 patients completed the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System measures with a median of 58 days (IQR: 47-72) postoperatively. Among patients without complications (n = 31210), 33.9% had PRO scores 1-SD worse than national benchmarks. Patients with complications were 1.7 times more likely to report worse PROs (95% CI: 1.6-1.8). Patients with complications had lower scores for global physical health [adjusted mean difference (AMD): 2.6, 95% CI: 2.2-3.0], lower for global mental health (AMD: 1.8, 95% CI: 1.4-2.2), higher for pain interference (AMD: 2.4, 95% CI: 2.0-2.8), higher fatigue (AMD: 2.7, 95% CI: 2.3-3.1), and lower physical function (AMD: 3.2, 95% CI: 2.8-3.5). CONCLUSIONS:Postoperative complications negatively affect multiple key dimensions of patients' health-related quality of life. PROs were well below national benchmarks for many patients, even among those without complications. Identifying solutions to improve PROs after surgery remains a tremendous quality improvement opportunity.