Living on the Own Island? Aligned Collaboration Between Family Physicians, Nurses, Dieticians, and Patients With Diabetes Type 2 in an Outpatient Care Setting in Northern Italy: Findings From a Qualitative Study

Abstract

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2), one of the four most important chronic diseases worldwide, is generally considered to be preventable. However, it is not yet sufficiently clear whether an aligned collaboration between different health professions could facilitate behavioral changes to be made by patients with DM2 regarding their eating and physical activity habits. Objective: To explore if and how far in current outpatient care for 3 health-care professions it is an objective to collaborate with each other supporting patients with DM2 in changing their eating and physical activity habits. Methods: We conducted 18 qualitative problem centered interviews with selected family physicians, nurses, dieticians working in outpatient setting and patients with DM2, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed with qualitative content analysis. Results: Issues identified ranged from description and reflection of current health-care practice, strategies, and hindrances to cope with changes of eating and physical activity behaviors as well as for health-care practice regarding interprofessional collaboration and patient-centered care up to considerations about collaboration and patient centricity (for health professionals and patients to achieve goals) and changes and ideas of “ideal care practice”. Discussion: The included professional groups work predominantly for themselves. Collaboration currently only takes place when individually triggered and neither structured nor organized.

Do Health Professionals Sufficiently Address Patients’ Disposition Toward Changing Their Nutritional and Physical Activity Habits? Findings from a Pilot Study among People with Type 2 Diabetes in Northern Italy

“…In particular, the seven items asked participants about the time dedicated to the encounter, the possibility for them to ask questions, their sense of being listened to and understood by the health professionals, their agreement with the professionals about which changes to pursue, and to what degree nutritional and physical activity habits were discussed. The first part of the questionnaire was additionally prepared with reference to the results of a qualitative study [ 33 ].…”

Kolaborasi Praktek Kesehatan Interprofessional Dalam Asuhan Ibu Hamil Dengan Diabetes Mellitus: Sebuah Scoping Review

“…Direct interaction between health workers and patients that takes place continuously and in collaboration with other health workers is very necessary for the creation of interprofessional cooperation (Kurniasih et al, 2019) Implementation of interprofessional collaboration in gestational diabetes mellitus, health workers who play a role in it, namely general practitioners, midwives, nurses, nutritionists. Barriers that arise in the implementation of interprofessional collaboration in gestational diabetes mellitus depend on individual of health workers and the unstructured system (Wieser et al, 2020) Interprofessional collaboration in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in pregnant women does not yet exist, thus, the further scoping review is needed. To find out about the roles and barriers of health professionals in the practice of interprofessional health collaboration in the case of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).…”