Modeling Patient Access to High-Volume Surgeons for Carotid Endarterectomy

Abstract

Multiple studies demonstrate an association between surgeon, hospital volume, and the outcomes of “high-risk” surgery, such as carotid endarterectomy (CEA). These findings have resulted in the creation of surgeon volume standards. The Leapfrog Group, for example, recommends an annual surgeon volume threshold of 10 CEAs per year. In this study, we link Medicare data to high-accuracy geolocation and navigation data sets to evaluate variation in accessibility to high-volume surgeons (HVSs) and develop models for predicting the impact of changes to the surgical workforce.