Controlling Diabetes - Are Clinical Practice Guidelines the Answer?

Abstract

Diabetes is a challenging disease that affects almost every organ system in the body. Every 17 seconds, someone is diagnosed with diabetes (Awareness Matters, n.d.). The World Health Organization (WHO, 2003) predicts that 350 million people worldwide will have type 2 diabetes by 2030. Meanwhile, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) believes nearly 400 million people have some form of diabetes today, and this number is expected to climb to 600 million over the next 25 years. To paint a clearer picture, this means one in ten people will be diagnosed with diabetes by 2035 (American Broadcasting Company [ABC], 2013). According to the Hawai’i Island Beacon Community website (2013), Hawai’i island is approximately the same size as the state of Connecticut; and while Connecticut has 34 major hospitals, the Big Island of Hawai’i has three. Sixteen percent of Hawai’i island residents report not having a primary-care provider (North Hawaii Outcomes Project, 2011). Hawai’i island providers are overwhelmed with patient loads, and patients experience long wait periods when trying to see a provider. The global epidemic of type 2 diabetes requires an innovative approach to prevention and treatment. The role of culture and socioeconomics must be acknowledged in the development of new interventions to prevent and control the disease. A clinical practice guideline (CPG) is essential to providing the best evidence-based care to patients with type 2 diabetes. The state of Hawai’i faces a significant healthcare problem. There is an overwhelming prevalence of type 2 diabetes in Hawai’i and a severe lack of primary-care providers to handle the diagnosis and management of this disease.