Adverse events identified by Global Trigger Tool in 245 patients with colon cancer in a well-defined population

摘要

Purpose : To report the rate, the type and the preventability of adverse events in patients with colon cancer. Materials and methods : In this retrospective population-based study conducted at one university hospital and six district hospitals from a region with one million inhabitants during an 8-month period 245 patients were diagnosed with colon cancer. The medical records were reviewed with the Global Trigger Tool method and the adverse events categorized as E (harm requiring some treatment), F (prolonged hospital stay), G (permanent disability), H (life saving measures performed in the intensive care unit), I (mortality associated with harm). Degree of preventability was evaluated. Results : Adverse events (n ?=?112) were reported in 35.9% of the patients (n ?=?88). They were more common after urgent than after elective admittance (45.3 vs. 31.8%). Category E was registered in 11.0%, F in 18.8%, and I in 6.1% (53.3% after urgent and 2.4% after elective admittance). Preventable or possibly preventable adverse events were judged to occur in 88.9% in the E group, in 97.8% in the F group, and in 53.3% in the I group. Adverse events associated with the surgical procedure dominated. There was a wide range of various types of adverse events but manifestations from the abdominal wall dominated. Conclusion : Adverse events were reported in one third of the patients. The majority of the adverse events in the whole cohort, and almost half of the patients who died postoperatively were assessed as possibly preventable or preventable.