IntroductionProject ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) is a tele-education outreach model that seeks to democratize specialty knowledge to reduce disparities and improve health outcomes. Limited utilization of endocrinologists forces many primary care providers (PCPs) to care for patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) without specialty support. Accordingly, an ECHO T1D program was developed and piloted in Florida and California. Our goal was to demonstrate the feasibility of an ECHO program focused on T1D and improve PCPs’ abilities to manage patients with T1D.Research design and methodsHealth centers (ie, spokes) were recruited into the ECHO T1D pilot through an innovative approach, focusing on Federally Qualified Health Centers and through identification of high-need catchment areas using the Neighborhood Deprivation Index and provider geocoding. Participating spokes received weekly tele-education provided by the University of Florida and Stanford University hub specialty team through virtual ECHO clinics, real-time support with complex T1D medical decision-making, access to a diabetes support coach, and access to an online repository of diabetes care resources. Participating PCPs completed pre/post-tests assessing diabetes knowledge and confidence and an exit survey gleaning feedback about overall ECHO T1D program experiences.ResultsIn Florida, 12 spoke sites enrolled with 67 clinics serving >1000 patients with T1D. In California, 11 spoke sites enrolled with 37 clinics serving >900 patients with T1D. During the 6-month intervention, 27 tele-education clinics were offered and n=70 PCPs (22 from Florida, 48 from California) from participating spoke sites completed pre/post-test surveys assessing diabetes care knowledge and confidence in diabetes care. There was statistically significant improvement in diabetes knowledge (p≤0.01) as well as in diabetes confidence (p≤0.01).ConclusionsThe ECHO T1D pilot demonstrated proof of concept for a T1D-specific ECHO program and represents a viable model to reach medically underserved communities which do not use specialists.
Community health workers (CHWs) provide vital support to underserved communities in the promotion of health equity by addressing barriers related to the social determinants of health that often prevent people living with diabetes from achieving optimal health outcomes. Peer support programs in diabetes can also offer people living with diabetes invaluable support through a shared understanding of the disease and by offsetting diabetes-related stigma. As part of a Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) Diabetes program, participating federally qualified healthcare centers were provided diabetes support coaches (DSCs) to facilitate patient engagement. DSCs hold invaluable expert knowledge, as they live with diabetes themselves and reside in areas they serve, thus combining the CHW role with peer support models. The use of DSCs and CHWs during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and beyond is highly effective at reaching underserved communities with diabetes and promoting health equity.
People with type 1 diabetes may receive a significant portion of their care from primary care providers (PCPs). To understand the involvement of PCPs in delivering type 1 diabetes care, we performed surveys in California and Florida, two of the most populous and diverse states in the United States. PCPs fill insulin prescriptions but report low confidence in providing type 1 diabetes care and difficulty accessing specialty referrals to endocrinologists.
T1D care for many patients in both the pediatric and adult populations in the U.S. falls on primary care providers (PCPs). Persistently suboptimal outcomes for people with T1D and a lack of access to subspecialty care mandates the development of innovative healthcare delivery models. Using the Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) model, Stanford University and the University of Florida partnered to develop and pilot a “ECHO T1D” teleECHOTM clinic. The goal of the pilot was to demonstrate the feasibility of an ECHO model for T1D and improve the ability of PCPs to manage patients with T1D. Utilizing a “Hub-and-Spoke” model, we recruited and partnered with PCPs at non-specialty diabetes practices across Florida and California and held weekly hour teleECHO sessions consisting of didactic presentations and case reviews. Precision recruitment methods to target clinics in remote and medically underserved regions included: (1) geocoding to identify high-need areas, (2) claims data to identify PCPs treating T1D, (3) survey data from PCPs. The 18-month pilot program is ongoing and enrollment demonstrated extremely high interest amongst PCPs as the pilot program filled beyond capacity. In California, 11 Spoke sites enrolled with 37 clinics serving roughly 900 adult and pediatric patients with T1D who do not receive specialty T1D care. In Florida, 12 Spoke sites enrolled with 67 clinics who serve roughly 1,300 patients with T1D. PCPs and their clinic staff have become local experts in T1D, providing a more informed level of care for the many patients who lack access to endocrinologists. Project ECHO T1D is an innovative healthcare delivery model which appears capable of building capacity for diabetes management education in the medically underserved. Having demonstrated proof-of-concept for ECHO T1D, future efforts will focus on replicating the model and on designing studies to demonstrate improvements in patient level outcomes. Disclosure N. Cuttriss: None. C. Anez-Zabala: None. L.G. Baer: None. A. Bernier: None. M. Basina: None. S.L. Filipp: None. K.K. Hood: Consultant; Self; Lilly Diabetes. Research Support; Self; Dexcom, Inc. Speaker's Bureau; Self; Johnson & Johnson Diabetes Institute. M.J. Gurka: None. R. Lal: Consultant; Self; Abbott. M.J. Haller: Advisory Panel; Self; Pancreum, SAB Biotherapeutics. D.M. Maahs: Advisory Panel; Self; Novo Nordisk Inc. Consultant; Self; Abbott, Sanofi. Research Support; Self; Dexcom, Inc., Tandem Diabetes Care. H. Hu: None. M. Town: None. E. Sheehan: None. C. Wang: None. K. Yabut: None. A.F. Walker: None. Funding The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust
Project ECHO® is a telementoring workforce development model that targets under-resourced communities lacking access to specialty care. The model builds virtual communities of practice, including specialists and community primary care professionals (PCPs) to combat clinical inertia and health disparities. While the ECHO model has gained global recognition, implementation of the model related to diabetes is lagging compared to other specialty conditions. This review highlights diabetes-endocrine (ENDO)-focused ECHOs using data reported in the ECHO Institute’s centralized data repository (iECHO) and the learning collaborative for diabetes ECHOs. It also describes the implementation of diabetes ECHOs and their evaluation. Learner and patient-centered outcomes related to diabetes ECHOs are reviewed. Program implementation and evaluations have demonstrated utility of the ECHO model for diabetes programs to (1) address unmet needs of diabetes care in the primary care setting, (2) improve knowledge and confidence in managing complex diabetes and change provider prescribing habits, (3) improve patient outcomes, and (4) address diabetes quality improvement practices in primary care. More studies with broader collaboration among sites are needed to evaluate the model related to diabetes, especially applied to addressing therapeutic inertia, adoption of diabetes technology, and reducing health disparities.
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