Primary care clinics can successfully use glucose monitors to help people with diabetes

A new study from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus shows that primary care clinics can successfully help patients start using continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), which track blood sugar levels in real time.

The study was published today in BMC Primary Care.

In the study, 76 primary care practices in Colorado explored two different approaches to help practices start using continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) with their patients. Some practices chose a self-guided option using educational tools developed by the American Academy of Family Physicians, while others referred patients to a virtual CGM initiation service run by a team of primary care-based health care professionals who were part of the research team.

Practices with in-house diabetes care and education specialists, formerly known as diabetes educators, were more likely to choose the self-guided route, while those without specialists preferred the study’s virtual service. Other than this difference, the practices were largely similar.

“This is great news for people with diabetes, especially those who don’t have easy access to a diabetes specialist,” said Kimberly Wiggins, MA, MEd, the lead author on the study and an instructor in family medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

“It shows that novel approaches can be developed to share resources, including diabetes care and education specialists, to start patients on CGM and then transition them back to their primary care practice.”

One of the unique parts of this study was that it was “primary care helping primary care,” all of the health care professionals that were part of the virtual CGM initiation service were based in primary care.

CGMs are small devices that track a person’s blood sugar day and night. They reduce or eliminate the need for finger-prick checks and help people better understand how food, physical activity, stress, and medication affect their blood sugar. This can lead to better health, fewer complications, and a better quality of life.

Despite these benefits, fewer than half of primary care doctors in the U.S. have ever prescribed a CGM.

“Our goal was to find practical approaches to help primary care clinics offer CGMs to their patients,” said Tamara Oser, MD, senior author of the study and professor and Director of the Primary Care Diabetes Lab in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

“We found that both methods worked. Even clinics without in-house diabetes experts were able to successfully offer CGM by using the remote option.”

“This is especially helpful for people who can’t easily see a diabetes specialist because they live in rural areas, experience insurance challenges, or face long wait times,” said Oser.

“This approach gives more people access to life-changing technology that is now the standard of care for many people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, no matter where they live or what kind of clinic they go to. This is another huge step in better treatment for the 38 million people living with diabetes in the U.S.”

The study is part of a larger effort to find ways to make diabetes care more available and more effective through primary care clinicians rather than relying solely on subspecialists. Researchers hope it will lead to more widespread use of CGMs and thereby help people more easily achieve their diabetes management goals.

A new study from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus shows that primary care clinics can successfully help patients start using continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), which track blood sugar levels in real time.

The study was published today in BMC Primary Care.

In the study, 76 primary care practices in Colorado explored two different approaches to help practices start using continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) with their patients. Some practices chose a self-guided option using educational tools developed by the American Academy of Family Physicians, while others referred patients to a virtual CGM initiation service run by a team of primary care-based health care professionals who were part of the research team.

Practices with in-house diabetes care and education specialists, formerly known as diabetes educators, were more likely to choose the self-guided route, while those without specialists preferred the study’s virtual service. Other than this difference, the practices were largely similar.

“This is great news for people with diabetes, especially those who don’t have easy access to a diabetes specialist,” said Kimberly Wiggins, MA, MEd, the lead author on the study and an instructor in family medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

“It shows that novel approaches can be developed to share resources, including diabetes care and education specialists, to start patients on CGM and then transition them back to their primary care practice.”

One of the unique parts of this study was that it was “primary care helping primary care,” all of the health care professionals that were part of the virtual CGM initiation service were based in primary care.

CGMs are small devices that track a person’s blood sugar day and night. They reduce or eliminate the need for finger-prick checks and help people better understand how food, physical activity, stress, and medication affect their blood sugar. This can lead to better health, fewer complications, and a better quality of life.

Despite these benefits, fewer than half of primary care doctors in the U.S. have ever prescribed a CGM.

“Our goal was to find practical approaches to help primary care clinics offer CGMs to their patients,” said Tamara Oser, MD, senior author of the study and professor and Director of the Primary Care Diabetes Lab in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

“We found that both methods worked. Even clinics without in-house diabetes experts were able to successfully offer CGM by using the remote option.”

“This is especially helpful for people who can’t easily see a diabetes specialist because they live in rural areas, experience insurance challenges, or face long wait times,” said Oser.

“This approach gives more people access to life-changing technology that is now the standard of care for many people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, no matter where they live or what kind of clinic they go to. This is another huge step in better treatment for the 38 million people living with diabetes in the U.S.”

The study is part of a larger effort to find ways to make diabetes care more available and more effective through primary care clinicians rather than relying solely on subspecialists. Researchers hope it will lead to more widespread use of CGMs and thereby help people more easily achieve their diabetes management goals.