Assessing physicians' adherence to clinical guidelines for monitoring diabetes

In the current issue of Family Medicine and Community Health (Volume 6,Number 4, 2018; DOI: https://doi.org/10.15212/FMCH.2018.0121, Mingliang Dai, Michael R. Peabody, Lars E. Peterson, Arch G. Mainous III of the American Board of Family Medicine, Lexington, KY 40511, USA, University of Florida, Department of Health Services Research, Management and Policy, Gainesville, FL, USA and University of Florida, Department of Community Health and Family Medicine, Gainesville, FL, USA consider how adherence to clinical guidelines is an integral part of the World Health Organization's Global Action Plan to reduce the impact of diabetes.

In this study, the authors used the 2013 National Ambulatory Care Survey to assess US physicians' adherence to the American Diabetes Association's guidelines for monitoring diabetes. We found a substantial gap between what was done in primary care settings and what is recommended for optimal diabetes management. The findings support the positive effect of continuity of care on improving diabetes quality of care.