Complex professional interventions improved the process of care , but the effect on patient outcomes remained less clear because such outcomes were rarely assessed .
Organizational interventions that facilitated the structured and regular review of patients also showed a favorable effect on process measures .
Complex interventions in which patient education was added and /or the role of a nurse was enhanced led to improvements in patient outcomes as well as the process of care .
CONCLUSIONS Multifaceted professional interventions and organizational interventions that facilitate structured and regular review of patients were effective in improving the process of care .
The addition of patient education to these interventions and the enhancement of the role of nurses in diabetes care led to improvements in patient outcomes and the process of care
Evaluation of a structured teaching and treatment programme for type 2 diabetes in general practice in a rural area of Austria.
The efficacy of a treatment and teaching programme for non-insulin-treated Type 2 diabetic patients in general practice was evaluated in a prospect i ve , controlled study . In a rural area in southern Austria , 53 patients from seven general practice s participated in a structured programme ( intervention group ) and 55 patients from seven general practice s without the programme served as the control group . After 6 months the weight reduction in the intervention group was 2.6 kg ( 1.6 - 3.7 kg , p < 0.001 ) and the difference in HbA1c between the groups was 0.92 % ( 0.23 - 1.61 % , p < 0.01 ) at follow-up . Systolic ( -16.6 mmHg ) and diastolic ( -11.1 mmHg ) blood pressure , serum triglycerides ( -0.63 mmol I-1 ) , and serum cholesterol ( -0.40 mmol I-1 ) were reduced significantly in the intervention group ( p < 0.006 ) . The number of patients with callus formation and poor nail care decreased significantly after participating in the teaching programme ( p < 0.001 ) . In the control group no reduction in body weight , metabolic control or in risk factors for diabetic foot complications were observed . Calculated health care costs per patient and year decreased in the intervention group ( -33 pounds ) and increased in the control group ( + 30 pounds ) mainly due to changes in prescription of oral hypoglycaemic agents in both groups . This programme may be an efficient and helpful model to increase overall quality of diabetes care according to the St Vincent Declaration
Complex professional interventions improved the process of care , but the effect on patient outcomes remained less clear because such outcomes were rarely assessed .
Organizational interventions that facilitated the structured and regular review of patients also showed a favorable effect on process measures .
Complex interventions in which patient education was added and /or the role of a nurse was enhanced led to improvements in patient outcomes as well as the process of care .
CONCLUSIONS Multifaceted professional interventions and organizational interventions that facilitate structured and regular review of patients were effective in improving the process of care .
The addition of patient education to these interventions and the enhancement of the role of nurses in diabetes care led to improvements in patient outcomes and the process of care