The effectiveness of in-hospital interventions on reducing hospital length of stay and readmission of patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A systematic review

Queensland Inpatient Diabetes Survey (QuIDS): patient experience survey evaluation

BACKGROUND

Measurement of inpatient experience can allow for treatment tailored to patient preferences and needs. The patient experience of diabetes care has not been explored in Queensland hospitals.

AIMS

To investigate the experiences of patients with diabetes when hospitalised using the Queensland Inpatient Diabetes Survey (QuIDS).

METHODS

In 2019 and 2021, patient experience surveys were collected as part of the statewide QuIDS, a cross-sectional study assessing the quality of inpatient care received by people with diabetes in Queensland, Australia. Patient responses were categorised and frequencies reported as percentages. Free text comments were analysed using thematic analysis methods. Pooled descriptive data were presented.

RESULTS

Responses were collected from 27 hospitals in 2019 (n = 526, 52.4% of all patients with diabetes) and 35 hospitals in 2021 (n = 709, 55.5%). Overall, patients were satisfied with their inpatient diabetes care. Areas for improvement identified by surveyed patients include the choice and timing of meals, staff knowledge about diabetes and increased diabetes self-management. Access to a specialist diabetes team was also identified as being potentially underutilised. Patient comments fell into four major themes: communication, food choices, patient autonomy and education.

CONCLUSION

Many patients reported positive inpatient experiences; however, patients also expressed dissatisfaction with their inpatient diabetes care. Our data provide unique insight and an opportunity to improve standards of care and service provision for inpatients with diabetes.

Efficacy of a training programme for the management of diabetes mellitus in the hospital: A randomized study (stage 2 of GOVEPAZ healthcare)

AIMS

To assess the efficacy of a structured educational intervention for health professionals on the appropriateness of inpatient diabetes care and on some clinical outcomes in hospitalised subjects.

METHODS

A multicentre (6 regional hospitals) cluster-randomized (2:1) two parallel-group pragmatic intervention trials, as a part of the GOVEPAZ study, was conducted in three clinical settings, that is, Internal Medicine, Surgery and Intensive Care. Intervention consisted of a 2-month structured education of clinical staff to inpatient diabetes care. Twelve wards - 2 for each hospital - and 6 wards - 1 for each hospital - were randomized to usual care and to the intervention arm, respectively. Consecutively hospitalised diabetic subjects (n = 524, age 74 ± 14 years, 57% males, median HbA1C 57 mmol/mol) were included. The clinical appropriateness of inpatient diabetes management was assessed by a previously validated multi-domain performance score (PS). Clinical outcomes included hypoglycemia, glucose control biomarkers, clinical conditions at discharge and inpatient mortality rate.

RESULTS

A numerically, but not statistically significant, higher PS (+0.94; 95% C.I.: -0.53 - +2.4) was achieved in the intervention than in the usual care wards. Hypoglycemias (p = 0.32), glucose control (p = 0.89) and survival rates (p = 0.71) were similar in the two experimental arms. Plasma glucose on admission (OR = 1.52 per 1 SD; C.I. 1.07-2.17; p = 0.021) and the number of hypoglycemic events per patient (OR = 1.55 per 1 SD; C.I.:1.11-2.16; p = 0.011) were independently associated with the inpatient mortality rate.

CONCLUSIONS

Structured education of the clinical staff failed to improve the inpatient appropriateness of diabetes care or clinical outcomes. In-hospital hypoglycemia was confirmed to be an independent indicator of death risk.

Interventions incorporating a multi-disciplinary team approach and a dedicated care team can help reduce preventable hospital readmissions of people with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A scoping review of current literature

AIMS

This review aimed to identify interventions that hospitals can implement to reduce preventable hospital readmissions of people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

METHODS

A scoping review framework was utilised to inform the overall process. The electronic databases Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Medline, the University of New England (UNE) library search engine and Google Scholar were utilised to search for relevant literature.

RESULTS

The results from this review demonstrate that interventions started at index admission for people diagnosed with T2DM can result in reductions in hospital readmissions. Common strategies which attributed to the success of interventions in reducing hospital readmissions of people with T2DM included a multidisciplinary team approach, a dedicated care team, certified diabetes educator appointments, basic survival skills education and influencing hospital protocol development and implementation.

CONCLUSION

This scoping review is an attempt at exploring and synthesising current research on interventions that hospitals can implement to reduce preventable hospital readmissions of people with T2DM.

Predicting readmission due to severe hyperglycemia after a hyperglycemic crisis episode

AIM

This study aimed to investigate the readmission pattern and risk factors for patients who experienced a hyperglycemic crisis.

METHODS

Patients admitted to MacKay Memorial Hospital for diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) or hyperglycemic hyperosmolar state (HHS) between January 2016 and April 2019 were studied. The timing of the first readmission for hyperglycemia and other causes was recorded. Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to compare patients with hyperglycemia and all-cause readmissions. Cox regression was used to identify independent predictors for hyperglycemia and all-cause readmission post-discharge.

RESULTS

The study cohort included 410 patients, and 15.3 % and 46.3 % of them had hyperglycemia and all-cause readmissions, respectively. The DKA and HHS group showed a similar incidence for hyperglycemia, with the latter group showing a higher incidence of all-cause readmissions. The significant predictors of hyperglycemia readmissions included young age, smoking, hypoglycemia, higher effective osmolality, and hyperthyroidism in the DKA group and higher glycated hemoglobin level in the HHS group.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients who experienced DKA and HHS had similar hyperglycemia readmission rates; however, predictors in the DKA group were not applicable to the HHS group. Designing different strategies for different types of hyperglycemic crisis is necessary for preventing readmission.

Key Considerations for Understanding Usability of Digital Health Initiatives for Adults With Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Qualitative Literature Review

AIMS

The rapidly growing number of adults with type 2 diabetes globally means the uses and benefits of digital health initiatives to enhance self-management of diabetes warrant review. This systematic qualitative literature review aimed to understand usability of digital health initiatives for adults with type 2 diabetes.

METHODS

This systematic qualitative literature review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, the PRISMA 2020 Statement methodology. Three databases were used (SCOPUS, Medline, and CINAHL) to identify studies published from 2016 to 2021 that focused on experiences, evaluations, and usability of digital health initiatives aimed at helping adults with type 2 diabetes to self-manage their condition.

RESULTS

From the 407 studies identified, 35 studies were assessed for eligibility with 10 studies included in the final synthesis. Five main themes emerged: (1) unmet emotional needs, (2) enhancing self-management, (3) desire for education, (4) usability/user-experience, and (5) risk of biomedical marker reductionism.

CONCLUSIONS

This review identified 5 key themes for consideration to understand usability of digital health initiatives. If these unmet psychosocial needs of adults with type 2 diabetes are better addressed in digital health initiatives, enhanced daily self-management will lead to more optimal diabetes management which can increase overall health outcomes, reduce the risk of longer-term complications, enhance quality of life for type 2 diabetes and improve more widespread adoption of digital health initiatives.