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Education and mentoring of primary care to improve diabetes care in the Waikato

Year:
2021
Duration:
24 months
Approved budget:
$174,993.00
Researchers:
Associate Professor Ryan Paul
,
Professor Dr Ross Lawrenson
,
Dr Cathy Buntting
,
Associate Professor Lynne Chepulis
Health issue:
Diabetes
Proposal type:
Foxley Fellowship
Lay summary
Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and its complications are a major health burden, which are predominantly managed in primary care. Significant inequities in care and outcomes of T2D exist between practices and between Māori and non-Māori. To try and reduce these inequities, new national guidelines on diabetes management including new funded agents will become available in late 2020, representing the largest change in diabetes care in New Zealand to date. Successful implementation of these guidelines and agents will require extensive specialist education and mentoring of primary care. However, the best methods of education are not known. This project will trial both online and offline specialist diabetes education and regular mentoring via teleconference to practices in the Waikato region. Questionnaires to health professionals and objective markers such as medication use and glycaemic control will be used to determine the most effective educational approach, and whether inequities have been reduced.