title: Integrating Diabetes Guidelines into a Telehealth Screening Tool.
abstract: Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States and contributes to long-term complications that are costly to healthcare systems. Twenty-five percent of all veterans in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) have diabetes. The purpose of this article is to describe the development and implementation of a quality improvement project to embed an evidence-based diabetes screening tool, based on Veterans Affairs/Department of Defense diabetes clinical practice guidelines, into the VHA electronic medical record. The objectives of the screening tool were threefold: to promote evidence-based care, to standardize care coordination, and to promote self-management and proper utilization of resources. Record reviews were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the screening tool. Results showed an 88 percent increase in the assessment of annual exams and/or labs, a 16.5 percent increase in disease management assessment and offering of services, and a 50 percent increase in goal-setting activity.
authors.affiliation: Kelly Gervera, DNP, RN, is a telehealth care coordinator at Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System/Panama City Outpatient Clinic in Panama City Beach, FL.
authors.forename: Kelly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gervera
authors.affiliation: Barbara Ann Graves, PhD, RN, is an associate professor at Capstone College of Nursing at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, AL.
authors.forename: Barbara Ann
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Graves
mesh_terms: D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000628:therapy*; D057286:Electronic Health Records; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D058996:Quality Improvement; D012648:Self Care; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs
keywords: diabetes; guidelines; screening tool; telehealth