PITTSBURGH, APRIL 4 Educating people with diabetes in a primary-care setting with sustained, comprehensive intervention resulted in significant improvement in disease management and overall health, according to a study published in the current issue of Diabetes Care, a journal of the American Diabetes Association (ADA). In the study, University of Pittsburgh Diabetes Institute researchers report the first evidence from a randomized, controlled clinical trial to show a clear association between a more comprehensive approach to diabetes management and improved health.

"Patients who received the chronic care model, or CCM, intervention experienced substantial improvements both physically and psychologically," said Gretchen Piatt, M.P.H., a doctoral candidate in the department of epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH) and the study's first author. "As a result of this study, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has redesigned the way in which diabetes care is delivered."

Using state-of-the-art education and other training tools, the CCM was designed to guide systematic efforts to improve health care for people with chronic illness. The idea is to motivate patients, caregivers and health care professionals to work as a team toward a goal of better outcomes.

"Not everyone will be able to see a diabetes specialist," noted Janice Zgibor, Ph.D., senior author of the study, assistant professor of epidemiology at GSPH and director of evaluation at the University of Pittsburgh Diabetes Institute. "Most people with diabetes, especially those in smaller communities, are managing their illness in the primary-care setting. The CCM intervention gives them, and their providers, better tools with which to do this."

The study involved diabetic patients who visited 11 primary care physician practices located in one of Pittsburgh's eastern suburbs between 1999 and 2003. The 11 practices encompassed 24
'"/>


4-Apr-2006

Page: 1 2 3 4
Related medicine news :

1. Significant rise in proportion of chronically ill children dying in intensive care
2. Significant amount of binge eating occurs in restaurants
3. Significant number of parents of junior athletes adversely affect their childs development
4. Significant reduction in antibiotic-resistant pneumococcal disease since the introduction of PREVNAR
5. Significant number of emphysema patients would find lasting benefit from lung surgery
6. Annual Bibliography of Significant Advances in Dietary Supplement Research 2004
7. Significant non-coronary findings found during heart CT scans
8. Significant fall in serious violence in England and Wales
9. Borderline personality disorder shows improvements with intensive psychotherapy
10. Quality improvement effort pays off in diabetes care
11. Implanting dopamine generators in brain cells obtains improvement in Parkinsons in monkeys