The Center for Perioperative Outcomes (CPO) strives to achieve excellence in research through collaborations within the Department of Anesthesiology and with external investigators. The CPO has developed a unique approach to achieve success by streamlining research processes and providing necessary resources to conduct research activities. A research tool kit has been created to facilitate the initiation of a research project. The kit includes guidance in doing a literature search to substantiate the hypothesis, and instructions on how to collect data, create methods for the research project, and outline the steps of creating a manuscript or abstract. Leveraging these resources, CPO staff and collaborators have the unique opportunity to be involved in many facets of research. The CPO has access to and experience using many large databases that may be utilized for health outcomes research, including the State Inpatient Database (SID), Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; National Inpatient Sample (NIS), Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; the Multicenter Perioperative Outcomes Group (MPOG); the National Anesthesia Clinical Outcomes Registry (NACOR), developed and maintained by the Anesthesia Quality Institute (AQI); and the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program; and local data. For more information regarding these resources, please click here or see our Frequently Asked Questions page.
Utilizing these retrospective datasets, investigators have been able to answer numerous research questions, including a study performed using SID to identify the incidence of, and factors associated with, hospital readmission following pulmonary lobectomy. Additionally, using NACOR data, researchers identified practice patterns in anesthetic use for total knee arthroplasty from January 2010-June 2013. For additional health outcomes studies performed, please click here.
Often, an individual new to research may not know where to begin and needs mentorship to guide them through the process. In the Department of Anesthesiology and in the CPO, experienced researchers are available to provide mentorship to ensure a research proposal is of high quality and will provide a meaningful impact in the scientific literature. To further enhance the research capabilities, a research tool kit has been developed to provide researchers with the steps necessary for a project. It begins with the development of a hypothesis and the importance of a literature review to properly evaluate and shape the hypothesis. The kit then walks the researcher through the requirements of the Clinical Study Evaluation Committee (CSEC) and the Institutional Review Board (IRB), the development of a scientific protocol, the datasets available for use, and resources to assist in the development of a manuscript or abstract.
The CPO provides clinicians, residents, and students the exceptional opportunities to work in an environment where they can participate in numerous research projects, depending on their interests and skill level, including health outcomes research or development and evaluation of IT technologies/mobile applications.