Association between frequency of telephonic contact and clinical testing for a large, geographically diverse diabetes disease management population.

Diabetes disease management (DM) programs strive to promote healthy behaviors, including obtaining hemoglobin A1c (A1c) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) tests as part of standards of care. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between frequency of telephonic contact and A1c and LDL testing rates. A total of 245,668 members continuously enrolled in diabetes DM programs were evaluated for performance of an A1c or LDL test during their first 12 months in the programs.

Impact of telephonic interventions on glycosylated hemoglobin and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol testing.

Objectives: To determine whether diabetes disease management (DM) programs are able to improve adherence to glycosylated hemoglobin (A1C) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) clinical testing in a nonadherent population and to quantify the efficacy of telephonic interventions in improving clinical testing rates.

Study Design: Retrospective, observational cohort study before and after DM program implementation.

Methods: A baseline cohort of members with diabetes (n = 5640) was identified from among large-scale diabetes DM programs administered for 13 geographically diverse health plans.