August 04, 2023 Increasing awareness to support better diabetes care

Is your blood pressure within range for someone living with diabetes? Is it time for you to have your kidneys checked? Is your A1C level higher than target? There is a lot of information to keep track of when you live with diabetes. So imagine the challenge facing doctors who care for people with diabetes: they not only have to care for hundreds of patients but also need to stay up to date with the latest evidence-based approaches for diabetes management.

Diabetes Canada’s Clinical Practice Guidelines (Guidelines) contain the best knowledge available to reduce risk and manage diabetes, but time-crunched primary care providers like your family doctor or diabetes specialist are swamped with numerous guidelines and recommendations about how to best care for their patients.

This is something Diabetes Canada recognizes and is taking action to change, with a new project that will make things easier for healthcare professionals.

“In a busy practice, it’s challenging to ensure every nuance of the Guidelines is covered. There simply isn’t time to extensively review them with every patient,” says Dr. Fred Melindy, a former practising physician who is now program director of eDOCSNL, Newfoundland and Labrador’s electronic medical record (EMR) program. Dr. Melindy is leading the project in partnership with Diabetes Canada to bring the Guidelines into the province’s EMR program and provide healthcare professionals with complete guidance when they care for their patients.

“The easier it is for doctors to access and use the Guidelines, the more likely they will be to consistently and completely implement them,” says Joanne Lewis, executive director of healthcare provider education and engagement at Diabetes Canada. “Ultimately, that is going to mean better care for people with diabetes.”

Easier access to the best info

Known as Practice360, the program is more than just a digital version of the Guidelines. It is a full electronic toolset that enables doctors to record and easily access all the information needed to provide the best care to their patients with diabetes. The program also includes EMR features that support decision-making, including prompts for routine tests. This feature is particularly important, as a 2015 study revealed that a significant portion of people with diabetes in Canada were not screened for complications with their feet, kidneys or eyes according to timelines recommended by the Guidelines.

The program features calculators, tools and tasks needed to care for patients with diabetes. Doctors can also see the results of any tests they have ordered for their patients. “Its power is in giving providers confidence in knowing that when they use the program, they are providing Guidelines-based care,” says Dr. Melindy. Educational resources and direct support by EMR Practice Advisors help doctors start and keep using the program.

Doctors can also use the program to see how well they are doing in providing diabetes care within their practice. They can see at a glance how many of their patients with diabetes are up to date with their screenings, have blood sugar or blood pressure out of ideal range, or are not receiving regular follow-up. Groups of patients who might need additional attention are highlighted; for example, if a doctor sees that 52 of their 98 patients with diabetes are overdue for foot exams, they could make foot exams a priority in future visits. “This information enables quality improvement at the practice level,” explains Dr. Melindy.

Expanding the reach of care

Practice360 launched in 2019 as a pilot project in Newfoundland and Labrador. “We are very grateful to our partners, including Boehringer Ingelheim Canada, Novo Nordisk and AstraZeneca, who contributed funding for the project in Newfoundland and Labrador,” says Lewis. “They really embraced this project and support the opportunity to help it spread. There is a lot of momentum, and we hope to see it scale across the country so that everyone living with diabetes in Canada can receive the best possible care.”

Did you know?

Dr. Fred Melindy, program director of the Diabetes Canada–funded project eDOCSNL, received a 2022 Digital Health Leader of the Year award for his “outstanding ongoing contributions [that] have helped advance digital health or virtual health in Canada,” and is featured in Diabetes Canada’s 2022 Impact Report. Find out more about how your generous contributions supported a year of progress and momentum during which Diabetes Canada also funded 30 promising new research studies, made it easier for people with type 1 diabetes to access the federal Disability Tax Credit, reconnected children and families to in-person camp activities, and successfully lobbied the federal government to table the Framework for Diabetes in Canada.

Diabetes Canada’s Clinical Practice Guidelines aren’t just for healthcare professionals. This resource, which provides the best evidence-based recommendations for preventing and managing diabetes, also includes information for people with diabetes. Visit Resources for People with Diabetes to learn more.