Root cause analysis reports help identify common factors in delayed diagnosis and treatment of outpatients.

Delays in diagnosis and treatment are widely considered to be threats to outpatient safety. However, few studies have identified and described what factors contribute to delays that might result in patient harm in the outpatient setting. We analyzed 111 root cause analysis reports that investigated such delays and were submitted to the Veterans Affairs National Center for Patient Safety in the period 2005-12.

Ability of early response to predict discharge outcomes with physical therapy for chronic low back pain.

Objective: To determine how well early responses to physical therapy for chronic low back pain predict outcomes at discharge.

Methods: A prospective single cohort study of chronic low back pain patients seen at a university spine physical therapy clinic. Self-reported pain severity on a 100-mm visual analog scale was measured before each physical therapy visit.