How Expert Support Helps Patients Achieve Positive Health Outcomes

Affecting more than 537 million people worldwide, diabetes is the fastest-growing chronic disease in the world. More than 38 million Americans have the disease, and researchers believe that number will increase by 54% by 2030.

The health care landscape is changing to meet the demands of this alarming increase, thanks in part to technological advancements like continuous glucose monitors (CGMs). However, technology alone isn’t enough when it comes to diabetes.

“Effectively managing diabetes involves more than medication,” said Bill Mixon, CEO of Advanced Diabetes Supply (ADS), a diabetes management supplier. “To manage this disease, patients and providers must take a holistic approach that involves lifestyle adjustments, ready access to reliable supplies and, more than that, personalized, guided care that includes education and ongoing support.”

While advancements like CGMs can help uncover needed lifestyle changes, it’s often difficult for patients to identify and implement those adjustments without expert guidance. More and more, general practitioners and primary care physicians are taking the lead in helping patients manage diabetes, but those providers may not have the needed understanding or insights about CGMs and other technologies to provide the level of guidance patients need.

Consistency Is Key

When it comes to effectively managing diabetes, consistency is key. Data has shown adherence to diabetes management plans leads to better health outcomes for patients—but that can be difficult for patients who have questions about their plans or don’t understand the data or trends their CGM is revealing.

One way to remedy this is to offer patients access to diabetes experts and additional educational resources. For example, ADS has Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialists (CDCES) who act as part of the customer’s care team. CDCES help patients identify self-management strategies, make sustainable lifestyle changes that empower them to meet behavioral and treatment goals, provide nutrition counseling and teach them how to minimize the risk of complications.

“Education and support are integral components of value-based diabetes care,” Mixon said.

This type of hands-on support for patients becomes even more imperative as new and complex diabetes management technologies, such as integrated CGM/insulin pump systems, become more readily available. These advancements hold great promise, but people who are using them to manage diabetes will need assistance in understanding how to use them correctly, and, more importantly, how to leverage them to achieve better health outcomes.

The Importance of Compliance

Navigating a diabetes diagnosis can be stressful for patients, which makes connecting them with a reputable diabetes management supplier that follows compliance rules and regulations even more important.

A supplier that fills a CGM prescription in a few days with no paperwork may sound good to patients, but should be a red flag to providers.

“A supplier that is 100% compliant has a reputation you can trust,” Mixon said. “Diligent suppliers take the time to make sure they have all the required documentation to ensure that they are compliant and that insurance will cover the costs of a patient’s needed supplies.”

Referring patients to non-compliant suppliers can be risky for patients and providers. For patients, these risks include unexpected out-of-pocket costs, interrupted care and the potential of receiving subpar or counterfeit products, all of which compromise patient safety and jeopardize the effectiveness of the treatment plan.

For prescribers, the risks of trusting a non-compliant supplier are equally detrimental, including reputation damage and increased scrutiny from payers and regulatory agencies, and, in some cases, financial or legal liability.

“When referring a patient to a diabetes management supplier, it’s important to consider the supplier’s accreditation and licensure, compliance with reimbursement guidelines, adherence to local coverage determinations and more,” Mixon said.

As the rate of diabetes diagnoses increases, the importance of personalized guided care will only continue to grow. For patients living with diabetes, this means better health outcomes, fewer complications and a higher quality of life.

In a world where diabetes is one of the fastest-growing chronic diseases, personalized guided care is not just an option—it’s a necessity.