Study Population and Inclusion

The inclusion criteria were: patients over 17 years of age with a confirmed diagnosis of IBD who had at least 1 appointment with an IBD specialist at the IBD Unit during April 2014–September 2016 with an ICD-9-CA code(s) indicative of CD (555.x), UC (556.x), or other and unspecified noninfectious gastroenteritis and colitis (558.9, including indeterminate colitis) in the primary diagnosis field. To assess the impact of the IBD CCP on the ED visits rate, patients were stratified into 2 groups. The “managed” group consisted of IBD patients who were under the care of IBD specialists and specialized IBD nurses at the IBD Unit in the 18 months preceding the study period, during which IBD care was provided according to the IBD CCP. The “nonmanaged” control group included IBD patients who were not under the care of the IBD specialists and specialized IBD nurses at the IBD Unit over 18 months preceding the study period.