title: Patient-Reported Barriers and Limitations to Attending Diabetes Group Visits.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Through this exploratory study, we sought to understand why group visit participation is low among adult patients with type 2 diabetes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eligible study participants included adult patients with type 2 diabetes. After a pilot survey was sent to a random sample of 48 patients, the remaining 187 eligible patients were invited to complete a revised version of the survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most frequently cited reasons for not attending group visits included diabetes under control, work and/or other responsibilities, and time barriers. There was variability in the desired time for the visits, though the majority of patients preferred evening visits. While some patients reported copays as a challenge, the likelihood of attending did not decrease for this subgroup. Most patients surveyed (54%) indicated interest in diabetes group visits.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Implementing strategies to address the patient-identified system barriers (eg, time, transportation, and copays) may increase participation in diabetes group visits.
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA, USA beth_a.careyva@lvhn.org.
authors.forename: Beth A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Careyva
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Melanie B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Kyle
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shaak
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stello
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Susan E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hansen
mesh_terms: D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: chronic disease management; diabetes; group education; group visits