Lessons Learned in 2010

Learning by experience is the best teacher. We learn and grow and are transformed not so much by what we do but by why and how we do it. Some of you started the process with full support. Others of you began laying a firm foundation with the bricks being hurled at you.

No matter the case, the GO! Diabetes program prizes your valiant efforts. We realize in the process of change, we are changed. More benefits are reaped from you and your team's transformation than from data compilation. But intentional actions create long-standing habits, so we go through the tedious chart reviews and processes with the bigger picture in view.

We shared with you the "a-ha" moments from the Atlanta Summit participants in the last edition. From an overall program point of view, here are some of the lessons learned and challenges gleaned from year three of the GO! Diabetes program:

• Faculty support is extremely important to implement system changes in a residency program. Share the vision early and often.
• Participation in the practice improvement part of this project (including METRIC) was higher in Change Agents who traveled out of town for their "Train the Trainer" session. Create and communicate more value.
• Maintaining momentum requires frequent interaction with the Change Agents after they return to the demands of patient care and other practice requirements. Uncover the most effective way for outreach and instruction.
• Private practice recruitment for the pilot in Georgia and Oklahoma worked well when tied into an existing chapter meeting. Remain respectful of time by streamlining participation and processes.
• From anecdotal evidence, the private practice training session that taught performance improvement tools resulted in more use of METRIC and more participation in practice improvement activities. Interactive learning builds confidence and develops a deeper understanding and command of the process.

Over the course of GO! Diabetes' three-year history, program proliferation continued with 47 residency programs and 36 private practices participating in 2010. That's a 488 percent growth since the program's inception. This year, 188 Change Agents lead the way for 1,281 trained physicians and clinical staff members to implement practice improvement changes to better care for people with diabetes.

By developing a team system to encourage accountability, utilizing the diabetes registry report card for each patient and instituting standing protocol orders for staff to implement, measurable program results took a remarkable leap forward. Although all data has yet to be tabulated, the upcoming Dec. 20 METRIC deadline for inputting follow-up data will provide needed results for the final report.

Our data is not simply numbers on a chart they are patients in your exam rooms, group visits and in your registry. Through doing, we learn how to build a more thorough and team approach to care and in the process help rebuild lives.

Click on the thumbnail to review each of the 2010 winning posters and abstracts from the Atlanta Summit.

"A Follow-up Study on Diabetes Care after Implementing Quality Improvement Measures in a Family Medicine Residency"

Abbegail Collantes, MD with Vincent Lo, MD and Tam Nguyen, MD
San Joaquin General Hospital
French Camp, CA

"Change in Process and Outcome Measures in Diabetes Patients with Implementation of EMR Reminders"

Jacqueline Harris, MD, MPH with Shahla Namak, MD, Stephen Davis, MD, Richard Lord, MD, MD and Julienne Kirk, PharmD, CDC
Wake Forest University SOM
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC

"Implementing Change to Promote Diabetic Care"

Lissa Lansdale, MSN, CRNP
UPMC McKeesport, PA
Latterman Family Health Center

"Making Improvements to Comprehensive Diabetes Care in an Underserved Setting"

Whitney Lyn, MD with Louvenia Ward, MSN and Jessica McIntyre, MD
Loyola University Chicago, Stritch SOM
Cook County-Loyola-Provident FMRP, Chicago, IL

2011

Please contact susan@godiabetes.org if you'd like to participate in next year's GO! Diabetes program which will start between May and September 2011.

In this Issue:
Lessons Learned in 2010

What did you learn through the GO! Diabetes process?

Identify opportunities for family medicine residency programs and private practices to improve the care of patients with diabetes.