Better Diabetes Care for the Underserved in West Virginia
Submission Date: December 2009
State/Territory Submitted on the Behalf of: West Virginia
States/Territories Involved: West Virginia
Domain Addressed:Health Systems Strategies
Public Health Issue:- West Virginia has the fourth highest rate of diabetes in the nation, a condition that causes serious complications such as heart attack and stroke.
- Low-income populations and those with limited access to care experience even greater risk for development of diabetes.
- Quality diabetes care can help reduce the risk of disease complications.
- Disease registries and electronic medical records can save time and help providers deliver better quality diabetes care.
- For several years the West Virginia University Office of Health Services Research has worked with Roane County Family Health Care, a federally qualified health center, to monitor and improve the quality of care provided to people with diabetes.
- Federally qualified health centers provide care to patients who are generally underserved, of low socioeconomic status, and at high risk for development of chronic disease.
- A strong partnership with the West Virginia Diabetes Prevention and Control Program enables the University to provide Roane County Family Health Care health professionals and staff with education in chronic disease management. They also helped establish and continue to support the Chronic Disease Electronic Management System that tracks the delivery of care provided to patients.
- The Chronic Disease Electronic Management System now includes all patients with diabetes and is used by the health center for quality assurance related to disease management.
There has been significant improvement in health-related measures for the health centerās patients with diabetes:
- The average improvement in measures of blood sugar control is an amount estimated to decrease amputations by over 8% and micro-vascular disease by almost the same amount. Micro-vascular disease causes vision loss and leads to blindness among people with diabetes.
- The system now documents that patients are getting their blood pressure measured.
- Average blood cholesterol among patients has improved by five percent.
- The health center implemented an electronic medical record and a reminder system that, along with the quality reports, helps them identify patients in need of care and get them to the center.
Diabetes, Health Equity and Cultural Competency
State Contact Information:
WV
Cecil Pollard
West Virginia University Department of Community Medicine
304-293-1080
cpollard@hsc.wvu.edu