Study Finds This Physician Behavior Reduces Death Rate by 28.4% in CABG Patients

Because we are a group of scientists and clinicians, it's even better when stories of teamwork come with hard data -- A recent study has found that physicians who worked more closely during coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedures had patients with significantly reduced rates of re-admission and death compared to facilities where emphasis on teamwork was not a priority. This study examined 251,630 patients who underwent CABG between 2008 and 2011 and received care from 466,243 physicians practicing in 1,186 health systems. The research showed that compared to low-cooperation institutions, facilities with more CABG collaboration had better outcomes for patients at the 60-day mark including: 

• 24.6% fewer emergency department visits 
• 24.4% lower readmission rates
• 28.4% lower death rates

The results indicate that hospitals where physicians work in tightly-knit groups who are focused on teamwork and efficient communication are able to produce better outcomes for the patients they serve. These results provide further support for the notion that care coordination is crucial, particularly in procedures like CABG, where diagnosis and information exchange needs to happen rapidly and accurately between all members of the team in order to speed up the care process. 

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