National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable Quality of Colonoscopy Recommendations
September 06, 2010
On Aug. 11, “The Quality of Colonoscopy Services — Responsibilities of Referring Clinicians: A Consensus Statement of the Quality Assurance Task Group, National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable” was published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. In November 2007, the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable commissioned a multi-specialty and multi-stakeholder working group to explore colonoscopy quality from the perspective of the referring primary care provider. The consensus statement was developed by the task group, which included AGA members and staff.
The recommendations focus on the endoscopist’s performance rates and other care factors. The main elements of quality include elements of a complete colonoscopy report, a safe setting for the endoscopy procedure, and technical competence as demonstrated by cecal intubation and adenoma detection rates. The task group agreed that these factors should be consistently and easily available to referring providers, regardless of the training and specialty of the endoscopist.
The need for a complete colonoscopy report was identified as essential for the primary care provider to understand a patient’s colorectal cancer risk and follow-up/surveillance needs. The relationship between cecal intubation and adenoma detection rates with the quality of colonoscopy is well documented. These rates suggest how well the endoscopist is able to detect and remove potentially cancerous lesions. Since each jurisdiction has its own safety requirements for settings in which endoscopies are performed, and there are various accreditation mechanisms for such settings, it is important for referring providers to be cognizant of the settings in which endoscopists practice.
