ImproveCareNow Announces Improvement in Remission and Sustained Remission Measures for Kids Living with IBD

ImproveCareNow (ICN) is committed to improving clinical outcomes measures for pediatric patients with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (also known as inflammatory bowel disease or IBD) cared for in our network. To monitor our progress, we consistently track measures for young patients with IBD cared for at ICN centers.  We are thrilled to report a shift in our clinical remission measure from 82.1% to 83.27%. This improvement means that approximately 300 additional ICN patients have achieved clinical remission.  Clinical remission is defined as the total number of patients with physician global assessment identified as quiescent from patients who have received a visit in the last 13 months (learn more in our Model IBD Care Guidelines).

Sixty percent of ICN care centers contributed to this clinical remission shift, documenting improved results in this measure and demonstrating consistent data entry into the ICN registry. Analysis by the ICN data team determined that there are many factors contributing to this improvement, including that centers are meeting or exceeding key process measures (patient visits, registrable population), as well as a relationship between remission status and medication usage.

Clinical remission is an important measure to capture because it is a key goal in the management of IBD in pediatric patients and means more patients are feeling well and enjoying the activities that are important to them.

This improvement reflects real progress for children and families we serve, and it is something we should all be proud of. This shift represents the collective effort of participating centers across the network—clinicians, nurses, QI teams, data specialists, and operational partners—who have consistently applied evidence-based care, tested changes, learned from one another, and remained committed to improvement even when the work was hard. Thank you to every center and every team member who contributed to this achievement. 

Shehzad Saeed, MD, FAAP, AGAF, Clinical Director, ImproveCareNow 

ImproveCareNow congratulates all our network care centers and teams for this fantastic accomplishment. We look forward to continuing to work together in pursuit of our shared goals to transform the health, care, and costs for all children & adolescents with IBD.  

Sustained Remission Measure Also Shows Improvement

In addition, ICN is pleased to report a shift in our sustained remission measure. Sustained remission is defined as the total number of patients with quiescent disease activity and no reported relapse for every visit in the 365-day window ending with the month being reported (learn more in our Model IBD Care Guidelines).

A recent discovery identified by care center team members at MassGeneral Hospital for Children revealed that previous sustained remission calculations did not fully capture all time periods during which patients were in remission. Based on the MassGeneral team’s finding, a recalculation was developed, which more accurately captures all time periods in which patients have been in remission. This improved calculation was rigorously tested and once approved, was applied retroactively to the ICN registry data. This resulted in a centerline for sustained remission moving in the desired direction, improving from 59% to 63%, meaning 558 more ICN patients are now considered to be in sustained remission.  

Both clinical remission and sustained remission are key measures that ImproveCareNow tracks and reports each month, and both are key indicators that more kids are feeling better and getting back to doing the things they love. Learn more about these measures on our Purpose & Success page.

Related Links

• • Our Success Infographic
  • ImproveCareNow Control Charts
  • 2024 Data Report
  • ImproveCareNow Announces Improvement in Prednisone-Free Remission Measure for Kids Living with IBD
  • ImproveCareNow Announces Improvement in Sustained Remission Measure for Kids Living with IBD

About ImproveCareNow

ImproveCareNow is a Learning Health Network dedicated to transforming care, health and costs for all children and youth with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (Inflammatory Bowel Disease or IBD) by building a sustainable collaborative chronic care network. We are enabling patients, families, clinicians and researchers to work together in a learning health care system to accelerate innovation, discovery and the application of new knowledge. We invite everyone interested in getting kids with IBD better right now to join us.