Quality improvement initiative to enhance multidisciplinary management of malignant extradural spinal cord compression

PURPOSE To determine if a quality improvement (QI) initiative could enhance multidisciplinary management of acute malignant extradural spinal cord compression (ESCC) at our institution. METHODS The medical records of all 40 patients who received palliative radiotherapy for malignant ESCC from 2015 to 2017 were reviewed to determine the time course of key National Comprehensive Cancer Network guideline–supported workup and management steps. On the basis of the findings, a multidisciplinary group of physician stakeholders developed a clinical pathway to facilitate expedited care. The efficacy of this clinical pathway and the educational content provided to all relevant departments were then evaluated by comparing outcomes with data from a similarly reviewed follow-up cohort of 25 patients from 2018 to 2019. RESULTS Patients treated for malignant ESCC after our QI intervention were more likely to undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the entire spine (64% v 44%; P 5 .013) and have a radiation oncology (RO) consultation before surgery (100% v 27%; P 5 .002). Median time from MRI to RO consultation decreased from 3 to 1 days (P 5 .03). On subgroup analysis, initial trends toward delays in RO consultation for patients planning for surgery (median, 3 days) or for lack of prior cancer diagnosis (median, 4 days) were reduced to delays of 0 and 1 day, respectively, after the QI intervention. No significant differences were observed in time to surgical consultation or surgery itself. CONCLUSION This QI study was able to stimulate better use of diagnostic imaging and earlier involvement of RO in multidisciplinary decision making, suggesting an effective approach to improving multidisciplinary care in other scenarios as well.