The randomized study, using a control group who received a standard pre-procedure colonoscopy packet and an experimental group who viewed an Emmi® program, was conducted by researchers at the Section of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. They sought to determine whether patients who viewed the Emmi program had lower anxiety ahead of the procedure and better knowledge of what it was about. The study also looked at other outcomes key to successful colonoscopy: colonic preparation, amount of sedation required, and procedure time.
Some 58% of patients in the experimental group reported that seeing the program reduced their anxiety. They also answered the knowledge questions correctly more often than the control group (82% vs. 74% correct). Patients who viewed the Emmi program required less sedation medication than the control group and less procedure time. The Emmi viewer patients also scored higher in terms of good or excellent colon preparations (96% vs. 88% for the control group).
The researchers, led by Siddhartha Parker, M.D., and Corey A. Siegel, M.D., wrote: “This easy intervention could not only help patients understand and feel more comfortable about colonoscopy, but increase efficiency and decrease recovery time by using lower doses of sedative medications. It is biologically plausible that a patient who is less anxious about a procedure will require less overall sedation for a procedure and this would similarly contribute to shorter procedure times.”
Emmi reduces variability in procedure attendance
The Dartmouth study is only the most recent of several analyses that show the Emmi colonoscopy program encourages patients to do the preparations correctly and arrive for their appointments with realistic expectations of what will take place.
To learn more about how Emmi can help extend the reach of your care teams and educate patients on procedure preparation, contact us.
