Automatic referrals within a cystic fibrosis multidisciplinary clinic improve patient evaluation and management

AUTOMATIC REFERRALS WITHIN A CYSTIC FIBROSIS MULTIDISCIPLINARY CLINIC IMPROVE PATIENT EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT. Background: Cystic fibrosis (CF) affects multiple systems beyond the pulmonary system, including the gastrointestinal and endocrine systems. Many CF clinics focus on pulmonary effects, initiating referrals to other specialties only when a condition has been identified by the primary pulmonary team. Unfortunately, many extrapulmonary manifestations of cystic fibrosis may be overlooked. Thus, implementing a multidisciplinary clinic with automatic referrals to designated subspecialists may improve patient care. Methods: This retrospective review of medical records examined the effects of integrating a pediatric endocrinologist into the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center Pediatric CF Clinic in March 2017. In this new CF/Endocrinology clinic, all patients scheduled to see a pulmonologist were automatically referred to pediatric endocrinology. We compared rates of referrals to pediatric endocrinology, oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs), and bone density (DEXA) scans before (2013–2016) and after (2017–2020) implementation of this clinic. We also recorded endocrine disorders being evaluated and/or treated after implementation. Results: The rate of referral to pediatric endocrinology increased from before (4%) to after (82%) (p