Table 1.

Patient- and system-related factors with diagnostic delay

Patient Factors
Frequent appointment no-shows
Frequent appointment cancellations
Declined evaluation
Medical comorbidity
Poor-quality information from patient history
Reference to patient noncompliance
Significant psychiatric diagnosis
Homelessness
System factors
Scheduling delay for colonoscopy
Incorrect Interpretation of results
Judgment error by clinician
Communication failure of clinician
Inexperience of clinician
Abnormal findings likely lost to follow up
Outside records not obtained
Weight (wt) loss not evaluated
Anemia not evaluated
FOBT request
Positive FOBT
Abnormal flexible sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy or polyp biopsy results
Abnormal barium enema or CAT scan results
Lesion missed by colonoscopy or flexible sigmoidoscopy
Lesion missed by barium enema