Adaptation of the European Crohn's Colitis Organisation quality of care standards to Italy: The Italian Group for the study of inflammatory bowel disease consensus

Abstract

Introduction: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) poses significant clinical challenges due to its chronic, disabling nature. Despite established guidelines, care standards remain inconsistent globally. In 2020, the European Crohn's Colitis Organisation (ECCO) developed quality-of-care standards. The Italian Group for the Study of IBD (IG-IBD) aimed to adapt those recommendations to Italy.

Methods: A 42-member interdisciplinary panel used a Delphi consensus to evaluate and modify ECCO statements and levels of importance, incorporating patient representatives and regional experts. Those statements were revised, some missing statements were added, and a two-round voting session was held among participants. Agreement ≥80 % was needed to approve a statement.

Results: From 101 ECCO statements, 112 tailored criteria were developed. In comparison to the ECCO statements, 80 were confirmed with the same level of importance, 9 were confirmed with different levels of importance, 9 points were merged in a broader statement, 3 points were dropped out during the two voting rounds, and 12 were added as new points.

Conclusion: The adapted standards provide a framework for standardizing IBD care in Italy. This model might help other countries in aligning with ECCO standards.

Keywords: Crohn's disease; Inflammatory bowel disease; Quality of care; Standards; Ulcerative colitis.