 |
The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
|
The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Linda A. DiMeglio, MD, Michelle L. Lucke, Shannon L. Wanner, and Cynthia S. Woodruff. School of Medicine - Department of Public Health, Indiana University, Regenstrief Health Center, Rm 4100, 1050 Wishard Boulevard, Indianapolis, IN 46202, 317-278-0337, dimeglio@iupui.edu
The prevalence of pediatric diabetes, particularly Type 2 diabetes, is rapidly rising. To gather information on Indiana pediatrician and family practitioner (FP) attitudes and practices related to Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in youth, the Indiana State Department of Health and MPH students from the Indiana University Department of Public Health partnered to develop and administer a cross-sectional mailed survey. In a 21 item survey, questions were asked about professional and practice characteristics of respondent physicians, practice patterns in diabetes diagnosis and management, counseling and referral practices for diabetics, and perceived barriers to care for diabetic children.
639 pediatricians and 747 family practitioners were contacted by mail. The first mailing generated 360 responses (26% response rate). After excluding physicians who were sub-specialists, retired, or did not care for any pediatric patients with diabetes, 161 surveys were analyzed. Their responses reveal a wide range of practice patterns, including differences in screening, with pediatricians predominantly using urinalyses and FPs using fasting plasma glucose (FPG). The majority of pediatricians and FPs who stated that they used FPG for diabetes diagnosis were not able to correctly cite ADA guideline values. For known diabetic patients, time was a significant to overwhelming barrier to providing diabetes education and counseling (38% pediatricians, 60.7% FPs), followed by patient or family financial limitations. Local resource availability, access and affordability were identified as being the most helpful items for improving the quality of care of diabetic children.
Two subsequent mailings to non-responders have been done. Data analysis is ongoing.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Diabetes, Pediatrics
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.