Professional photo of Colby Souders smiling at camera

Colby Souders, M.D. Receives Integrating Special Populations (ISP) Pilot Award

By Frontiers , Clinical and Translational Science Institute

Oct 23, 2024

Pilot Study: Outcomes of Urinary Incontinence Treatment in Primary Care: Rural (OUTPACE-R)

Expanding subspecialty care in rural settings is an important part of improving healthcare access for all. Colby P. Souders, M.D., plans to study urinary incontinence among women in rural settings with her Lauren S. Aaronson Award. The overarching goal of her study is to identify the best method to support primary care physicians as they care for women with urinary incontinence. Through this work, she hopes to increase primary care provider knowledge about urinary incontinence so that quality of care is improved and patients have earlier access to subspecialty care. Souders is currently the site Principal Investigator at University of Kansas Medical Center for a larger study of similar design which is currently underway at three urban, academic centers: the University of California San Diego, the University of California Los Angeles, and the University of Kansas Medical Center. This award will support Souders as she expands this study to include primary care physicians and female patients with urinary incontinence in rural Missouri.

Currently, depending on geographic location and insurance status, patients wait at least several months to see a urologist. This study will utilize two methods for subspeciality referral to provide earlier access to subspecialty care, both of which are particularly well-suited for rural patients.

“Not all of these patients necessarily require an in-person visit to get high-quality incontinence care,” Souders said.

Half of the rural providers will have e-consults with a urologist, which will allow the specialist to suggest next steps to the primary care provider and determine whether the patient needs to be seen in person by a subspecialist. The award will directly support Souders as she develops the infrastructure for this eConsult model of care in rural areas. Her hope is that primary care providers will feel more supported by their subspecialty colleagues, empowering them to provide better care and establishing streamlined conduits to subspecialty care when needed.

The remaining providers will operate under a telehealth referral model where patients are referred to advanced practice providers (APP) in urology and the primary care provider transfers urinary incontinence care to the APP. Souders wants to determine which model of subspecialty support to the primary care providers is preferrable for providers and patients, as optimizing efficiency and treatment outcomes benefits both patients and providers. The study team is currently enrolling providers in rural Missouri. As the study progresses, they will look at the quality of incontinence care provided, patient satisfaction, and incontinence outcomes, as well as the providers’ knowledge and adherence to urinary incontinence quality of care metrics.

Frontiers

Clinical and Translational Science Institute

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