MON-117 Reducing Unnecessary Repeat Vitamin D Testing at a Large Ambulatory Hospital: A Quality Improvement Initiative

Background: With the increasing interest in the importance and potential benefits of vitamin D, there has been a significant rise in unnecessary vitamin D testing. The aim of the project was to reduce unnecessary repeat vitamin D testing at Women’s College Hospital by 50% by May 30(th) 2020. Methods: The Model for Improvement framework was used in the design of the quality improvement project to reduce unnecessary repeat vitamin D testing. Problem characterization was conducted to design the intervention to address root causes and iterative Plan-do-Study-Act cycles were used to develop an intervention that incorporated a best practice advisory (BPA). The primary outcome measure was unnecessary vitamin D testing. Unnecessary repeat testing was defined as: repeat 25-hydroxyvitamin D testing within 3 months or repeat 25-hydroxyvitamin D testing after a normal result (>75 mmol/L) in the preceding 12 months. Secondary outcomes which included BPAs generated, as well as the number of BPAs that resulted in no test being ordered were tracked. Paper-based orders were also tracked as a balancing measure. Results: It was identified that 12.7% of vitamin D testing (n= 289/2276) between July 2017 and July 2018 was related to unnecessary repeat testing. Following our cause and effect analysis and problem characterization, it was noted that providers ordered repeat vitamin D testing due to being unaware of prior normal results, as well as due to a knowledge gap of current testing recommendations. If the 25-hydroxyvitamin D order was identified as unnecessary at the time of order entry, a BPA was generated at the point of care. The BPA was implemented on February 4(th), 2019. As of August 31st, 2019 based on the analysis of the number of BPAs generated and the number of tests not ordered as a result, there has been a 26% reduction in the number of inappropriate repeat vitamin D orders. Conclusions: Based on the preliminary data, a best practice advisory alert for vitamin D testing can be an appropriate QI intervention to reduce unnecessary vitamin D testing. Ongoing data analysis will be conducted to assess the long-term impact and sustainability of this intervention. Next steps include consideration of implementation of force function to reduce inappropriate repeat vitamin D testing.