The most significant effect observed is with the change from baseline results .
Some evidence suggests post-intervention and change from baseline systolic blood pressure improvement at the nine to twelve month interval and change from baseline improvement at the 4 year timeframe .
There is no evidence that group visits improve LDL cholesterol values of the group visit participants .
IMPLICATION S FOR PRACTICE The evidence suggests that the most powerful model of Group medical visits ( GMV ) is when a clinician prescriber is present during or immediately after GMV sessions for medication reconciliation or individual patient needs .
BACKGROUND The prevalence of diabetes mellitus is ubiquitous .
Complications and costs of diabetes are rising and are depleting limited re sources .
It is imperative for healthcare professionals and patients alike to confront this chronic condition by exploring new interventions .
An innovative health care delivery model has emerged in the last 25 years in the form of the group medical visit .
Group medical visits can range from of six to twenty patients scheduled together with time allotted for individual care as well as in the group setting .
Improving Chronic Care of Type 2 Diabetes Using Teams of Interprofessional Learners
Purpose To improve the care and outcomes of adult patients with type 2 diabetes by teaching interprofessional teams of learners the principles and practice s of the Improving Chronic Illness Care Model . Method The study population consisted of 384 adult patients with type 2 diabetes . The study design was a nonr and omized , parallel-group , clinical trial conducted during 18 months in the University of California , San Francisco internal medicine clinics .  Interprofessional team care provided by primary care internal medicine residents , nurse practitioner students , and pharmacy students was compared with usual care by internal medicine residents only .  Processes of care , clinical status , and health utilization were measured in both patient groups . Learner outcomes also were assessed and compared . Results At study completion , intervention patients more frequently received assessment s of glycosolated hemoglobin ( 79 % versus 67 % ; P = .01 ) , LDL-C ( 69 % versus 55 % ; P = .009 ) , blood pressure ( 86 % versus 79 % ; P = .08 ) , microalbuminuria ( 40 % versus 30 % ; P = .05 ) , smoking status assessment ( 43 % versus 31 % ; P = .02 ) , and foot exams ( 38 % versus 20 % ; P = .0005 ) . Intervention patients had more planned general medicine visits ( 7.9 ± 6.2 versus 6.2 ± 5.7 ; P = .006 ) than did control patients . Interprofessional learners rated themselves significantly higher on measures of accomplishment , preparation , and success for chronic care than did the usual care learners . Conclusions Interprofessional team care by learners was effective in improving quality of care for adult patients with diabetes treated in general medicine clinics . The chronic illness framework result ed in more appropriate health care utilization
The most significant effect observed is with the change from baseline results .
Some evidence suggests post-intervention and change from baseline systolic blood pressure improvement at the nine to twelve month interval and change from baseline improvement at the 4 year timeframe .
There is no evidence that group visits improve LDL cholesterol values of the group visit participants .
IMPLICATION S FOR PRACTICE The evidence suggests that the most powerful model of Group medical visits ( GMV ) is when a clinician prescriber is present during or immediately after GMV sessions for medication reconciliation or individual patient needs .
BACKGROUND The prevalence of diabetes mellitus is ubiquitous .
Complications and costs of diabetes are rising and are depleting limited re sources .
It is imperative for healthcare professionals and patients alike to confront this chronic condition by exploring new interventions .
An innovative health care delivery model has emerged in the last 25 years in the form of the group medical visit .
Group medical visits can range from of six to twenty patients scheduled together with time allotted for individual care as well as in the group setting .