Project ECHO Diabetes Trial Improves Outcomes for Medically Underserved People.

Objective: The Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) model is used in 180 countries to address chronic disease care through a provider empowerment, tele-education approach. Few studies have rigorously evaluated the impact of the program on patient outcomes using randomized designs.

Research Design And Methods: Implementation of an ECHO Diabetes program was evaluated using a stepped-wedge design with recruitment of 20 federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) across California and Florida with randomized, phased-in intervention entry.

Telehealth service use and quality of care among US adults with diabetes: A cross-sectional study of the 2022 health information national trends survey.

Objective: To characterise telehealth use, reasons for using or not using telehealth and the factors associated with telehealth use among US adults with diabetes.

Design: A cross-sectional study.

Setting: Data were sourced from the 2022 Health Information National Trends Survey.

Not all healthcare inequities in diabetes are equal: a comparison of two medically underserved cohorts.

Introduction: Diabetes disparities exist based on socioeconomic status, race, and ethnicity. The aim of this study is to compare two cohorts with diabetes from California and Florida to better elucidate how health outcomes are stratified within underserved communities according to state location, race, and ethnicity.

Research Design And Methods: Two cohorts were recruited for comparison from 20 Federally Qualified Health Centers as part of a larger ECHO Diabetes program.

Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes Intervention Evaluations: A Scoping Review of Research Methods.

Introduction: Since its inception in 2003, the Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) tele-education model has reached and improved outcomes for patients, providers, and health centers through interventions in >180 countries. Utilization of this model has recently increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a higher demand for remote education. However, limited research has examined the methodologies used to evaluate Project ECHO interventions.

COVID-19 impacts and inequities among underserved communities with diabetes.

Background: People with diabetes have higher COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. These risks are amplified for underserved communities including racial/ethnic minorities and people with lower socioeconomic status. However, limited research has examined COVID-19 outcomes specifically affecting underserved communities with diabetes.

Multisite Quality Improvement Program Within the Project ECHO Diabetes Remote Network.

Background: The telementoring Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) model has been shown to improve disease management in diabetes in many underserved communities. The authors aim to evaluate if ECHO could also be an effective tool for quality improvement (QI) of diabetes care in these communities.

Methods: Thirteen clinics in underserved communities in California and Florida participating in Project ECHO Diabetes were recruited for a 12-month QI program.

Recruiting historically under-represented individuals into Project ECHO Diabetes: using barrier analysis to understand disparities in clinical research in the USA.

Objectives: Individuals under-recruited in diabetes research studies include those not seen at endocrinology centres and those from rural, low socioeconomic and/or under-represented racial/ethnic groups. The purpose of this descriptive analysis is to detail recruitment and retention efforts of Project ECHO Diabetes clinical sites affiliated with Stanford University and University of Florida.

Design: Prospective collection of participant engagement and qualitative analysis of barriers and facilitators of research engagement within Project ECHO Diabetes, a virtual tele-education programme for healthcare providers in the management of individuals with insulin-requiring diabetes.

The Promising Success of Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) Diabetes: Case Series.

Background: In the United States, there are over 37 million people with diabetes but only 8000 endocrinologists. Therefore, many people with diabetes receive care exclusively from primary care providers (PCPs). To democratize knowledge regarding insulin-requiring diabetes through tele-education, Stanford University and the University of Florida developed Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) Diabetes.

Interventions to address global inequity in diabetes: international progress.

Diabetes is a serious chronic disease with high associated burden and disproportionate costs to communities based on socioeconomic, gender, racial, and ethnic status. Addressing the complex challenges of global inequity in diabetes will require intentional efforts to focus on broader social contexts and systems that supersede individual-level interventions. We codify and highlight best practice approaches to achieve equity in diabetes care and outcomes on a global scale.

Blue Circle Health: A Novel Patient-Centered Model of Health Care Delivery for Low-Income Patients With Type 1 Diabetes.

Analog insulins, insulin pumps, and continuous glucose monitors (CGM) have revolutionized type 1 diabetes (T1D) treatment over the last 50 years. Nevertheless, less than 20% of patients in the United States reach guideline-based HbA1c targets. The dysfunctional delivery of U.

Project ECHO Diabetes Cost Modeling to Support the Replication and Expansion of Tele-mentoring Programs in Non-research Settings.

Introduction: Project ECHO Diabetes is a tele-education learning model for primary care providers (PCPs) seeking to improve care for patients with diabetes from marginalized communities. Project ECHO Diabetes utilized expert "hub" teams comprising endocrinologists, dieticians, nurses, psychologists, and social workers and "spokes" consisting of PCPs and their patients with diabetes. This Project ECHO Diabetes model provided diabetes support coaches to provide additional support to patients.

Tele-education model for primary care providers to advance diabetes equity: Findings from Project ECHO Diabetes.

Introduction: In the US, many individuals with diabetes do not have consistent access to endocrinologists and therefore rely on primary care providers (PCPs) for their diabetes management. Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) Diabetes, a tele-education model, was developed to empower PCPs to independently manage diabetes, including education on diabetes technology initiation and use, to bridge disparities in diabetes.

Methods: PCPs (n=116) who participated in Project ECHO Diabetes and completed pre- and post-intervention surveys were included in this analysis.

Using Peer Power to Reduce Health Disparities: Implementation of a Diabetes Support Coach Program in Federally Qualified Health Centers.

Community health workers (CHWs) provide vital support to underserved communities in the promotion of health equity by addressing barriers related to the social determinants of health that often prevent people living with diabetes from achieving optimal health outcomes. Peer support programs in diabetes can also offer people living with diabetes invaluable support through a shared understanding of the disease and by offsetting diabetes-related stigma. As part of a Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) Diabetes program, participating federally qualified healthcare centers were provided diabetes support coaches (DSCs) to facilitate patient engagement.

Psychological Outcomes of the COVID-19 Pandemic on People with Type 1 Diabetes Globally: A Scoping Review.

Background: People with type 1 diabetes (T1D) face heightened risks for morbidity and mortality from the 2019 Coronavirus (COVID-19). They also have elevated risks for disparate psychological outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic, given their predisposition to mental health disorders, including anxiety and depression, and skyrocketing rates of these conditions among the general population.

Methods: To investigate the psychological ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic on people with T1D globally, we conducted a scoping review of recent literature across eight online databases.

Democratizing type 1 diabetes specialty care in the primary care setting to reduce health disparities: project extension for community healthcare outcomes (ECHO) T1D.

Introduction: Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) is a tele-education outreach model that seeks to democratize specialty knowledge to reduce disparities and improve health outcomes. Limited utilization of endocrinologists forces many primary care providers (PCPs) to care for patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) without specialty support. Accordingly, an ECHO T1D program was developed and piloted in Florida and California.

Barriers to Technology Use and Endocrinology Care for Underserved Communities With Type 1 Diabetes.

Objective: Disparities in type 1 diabetes related to use of technologies like continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and utilization of diabetes care are pronounced based on socioeconomic status (SES), race, and ethnicity. However, systematic reports of perspectives from patients in vulnerable communities regarding barriers are limited.

Research Design And Methods: To better understand barriers, focus groups were conducted in Florida and California with adults ≥18 years old with type 1 diabetes with selection criteria including hospitalization for diabetic ketoacidosis, HbA >9%, and/or receiving care at a Federally Qualified Health Center.

The Neighborhood Deprivation Index and Provider Geocoding Identify Critical Catchment Areas for Diabetes Outreach.

Purpose: In designing a Project ECHO™ type 1 diabetes (T1D) program in Florida and California, the Neighborhood Deprivation Index (NDI) was used in conjunction with geocoding of primary care providers (PCPs) and endocrinologists in each state to concurrently identify areas with low endocrinology provider density and high health risk/poverty areas. The NDI measures many aspects of poverty proven to be critical indicators of health outcomes.

Methods: The data from the 2013-2017 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates were used to create NDI maps for California and Florida.

Tele-rounds and Case-Based Training: Project ECHO Telementoring Model Applied to Complex Diabetes Care.

Lack of access to subspecialty care and persistent suboptimal outcomes for insulin-requiring patients with diabetes mandates development of innovative health care delivery models. The workforce shortage of endocrinologists in the United States results in primary care providers taking on the role of diabetes specialists despite lack of confidence and knowledge in complex diabetes management. The telementoring model Project ECHO amplifies and democratizes specialty knowledge to reduce disparities in care and improve health outcomes.

Primary Care Providers in California and Florida Report Low Confidence in Providing Type 1 Diabetes Care.

People with type 1 diabetes may receive a significant portion of their care from primary care providers (PCPs). To understand the involvement of PCPs in delivering type 1 diabetes care, we performed surveys in California and Florida, two of the most populous and diverse states in the United States. PCPs fill insulin prescriptions but report low confidence in providing type 1 diabetes care and difficulty accessing specialty referrals to endocrinologists.

Teaching Type 1 Diabetes: Creating Stakeholder Engagement in Biomedical Careers Through Undergraduate Research Curriculum.

Undergraduate students living with chronic diseases attending universities where major biomedical research takes place are critical stakeholders in these programs, yet they often remain sequestered from them. A directed research curriculum about Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) was developed to better engage undergraduate students with personal connections to the disease in a large medical university setting world renowned for its research in this area. The course had the following student learning outcomes: (1) gain knowledge of major T1D research programs; (2) exposure to careers in T1D research and clinical care; and (3) recognize bioethical issues in T1D research.

Addressing health disparities in type 1 diabetes through peer mentorship.

Pronounced health disparities exist in type 1 diabetes (T1D) based on socioeconomic status (SES) yet there are a lack of programs designed to promote health equity for vulnerable communities. The All for ONE (Outreach, Networks, and Education) mentoring program was piloted pairing college students and publicly insured teenagers with T1D to assess feasibility as a possible intervention. There were 22 mentors recruited (mean age 20 ± 2 years; 17 [77%] females; mean HbA1c 8.

Erratum: Disparities in Social Support for Youths With Type 1 Diabetes. Clinical Diabetes 2015;33:62-69.

[This corrects the article on p. 62 in vol. 33, PMID: 25897185.