Trends in Wait Time for Outpatient Colonoscopy in the Veterans Health Administration, 2008–2015

Background The Veterans Health Administration (VA) recently has been scrutinized for prolonged wait times for routine medical care, including elective outpatient procedures such as colonoscopy. Wait times for colonoscopy following positive fecal occult blood test (FOBT) are associated with worse clinical outcomes only if greater than 6 months. Objective We aimed to investigate time trends in wait time for outpatient colonoscopy in VA and factors influencing wait time. Design Retrospective cohort study using mixed-effects regression of VA administrative data from the Corporate Data Warehouse. Participants Veterans who underwent outpatient colonoscopy for positive FOBT in 2008–2015 at 124 VA endoscopy facilities. Main Measures The main outcome measure was wait time (in days) between positive FOBT and colonoscopy completion, stratified by year and adjusted for sedation type, year, and potentially influential patient- and facility-level factors. Key Results In total, 125,866 outpatient colonoscopy encounters for positive FOBT occurred during the study period. The number of colonoscopies for this indication declined slightly over time (17,586 in 2008 vs. 13,245 in 2015; range 13,425–19,814). In 2008, median wait time across sites was 50 days (interquartile range [IQR] = 33, 75). There was no secular trend in wait times (2015 median = 52 days, IQR = 34, 77). Examining the adjusted effect of patient- and facility-level factors on wait time, no clinically meaningful difference was found. Conclusions Wait times for colonoscopy for positive FOBT have been stable over time. Despite the perception of prolonged VA wait times, wait times for outpatient colonoscopy for positive FOBT are well below the threshold at which clinically meaningful differences in patient outcomes have been observed.