Primary care patient and provider preferences for diabetes care managers

Figures & data

Table 1 Patient demographics (n = 254)

Characteristic	Number	%
Age (n = 251)
≤ 50	24	10%
51–70	108	43%
71+	119	47%
Gender (n = 249)
Male	116	47%
Female	133	53%
Marital status (n = 249)
Single/Divorced/Separated/Widowed	86	35%
Married	163	65%
Race (n = 251)
White	235	94%
African American	5	2%
American Indian	1	0%
Asian	3	1%
Hispanic (Latino)	4	2%
Other	3	1%
Years of school finished (n = 246)
Grades 1–8	16	7%
Grades 9–12	88	36%
College/university (13–17)	108	44%
Graduate school (18–22)	22	9%
Postgraduate (23+)	11	4%
Multiple responses	1	0%
Years since first diagnosed with diabetes (n = 247)
≤ 5	90	36%
6–10	68	28%
≥ 11	89	36%
Means of getting to clinic appointments (n = 250)
Drive myself	161	64%
Take public transportation	8	3%
Family member	28	11%
Walk	10	4%
Other	10	4%
Multiple responses (9)	33	13%

Table 2a Patients’ preferences on care management by care managers (number (%); n = 254)

	Yes	Maybe	No	No answer
Are you willing to see a care manager for diabetes visit?	178 (70.4%)	49 (19.4%)	23 (9.1%)	3 (1.2%)
Are you willing to have your treatment plan modified by the care manager under the guidance of your doctor?	179 (70.8%)	43 (17.0%)	24 (9.5%)	7 (2.8%)
Are you willing to have your tests scheduled and coordinated by a care manager?	190 (75.1%)	37 (14.6%)	21 (8.3%)	5 (2.0%)
Are you willing to have the care manager contact you to follow-up on your treatment progress?	195 (77.1%)	31 (12.3%)	19 (7.5%)	8 (3.2%)
Are you willing to have the care manager schedule follow-up visits?	191 (75.5%)	35 (13.8%)	20 (7.9%)	7 (2.8%)

Table 2b Providers’ preferences on care management by care managers (number (%); n = 28)

	Yes	Maybe	No
I am willing to have my patients with diabetes see a care manager	26 (92.9%)	1 (3.6%)	1 (3.6%)
I am willing to have my patient’s treatment plan modified by the care manager under my guidance or established protocol	25 (89.3%)	2 (7.1%)	1 (3.6%)
I am willing to have my patients’ diabetes tests scheduled and coordinated by a care manager	27 (96.4%)	1 (3.6%)	0
I am willing to have the care manager contact my patients to follow-up on treatment progress	27 (96.4%)	1 (3.6%)	0
I am willing to have the care manager schedule follow-up clinic visits for my patients if needed to ensure good control of their diabetes	26 (96.3%)	1 (3.6%)	0

Table 3 Questions with significant responses on multivariate regression analysis (n = 249)

	Odds ratio	95% CI		P-value
		Lower	Upper
1. Are you willing to see a care manager for a diabetes visit?
Male	1.271	0.688	2.347	0.4436
Age ≤ 50	1.647	0.553	4.910	0.3705
Age ≥ 71	1.146	0.629	2.089	0.6566
Married	1.446	0.781	2.678	0.2402
College education	1.311	0.714	2.410	0.3825
Graduate school education	1.560	0.592	4.111	0.3685
DM DX 6–10 yrs	1.434	0.668	3.080	0.3550
DM DX ≥ 11 yrs	0.645	0.336	1.238	0.1876
Final Model
DM DX ≥ 11 yrs	0.551	0.315	0.965	0.0371
5. Are you willing to have the care manager schedule follow-up on your treatment progress?
Male	1.132	0.585	2.190	0.7133
Age ≤ 50	2.375	0.640	8.807	0.1958
Age ≥ 71	1.036	0.549	1.954	0.9136
Married	1.694	0.880	3.262	0.1148
College education	1.070	0.559	2.048	0.8374
Graduate school education	1.333	0.474	3.746	0.5856
DM DX 6–10 yrs	1.733	0.740	4.055	0.2051
DM DX ≥ 11 yrs	0.668	0.337	1.326	0.2492
Final Model
DM DX 6–10 yrs	2.159	1.023	4.555	0.0433
6. How confident are you that a care manager can help you keep your diabetes under control?
Male	0.869	0.460	1.640	0.6641
Age ≤ 50	1.234	0.413	3.692	0.7065
Age ≥ 71	0.954	0.512	1.778	0.8829
Married	1.520	0.796	2.901	0.2046
College education	1.069	0.566	2.018	0.8367
Graduate school education	0.997	0.385	2.586	0.9957
DM DX 6–10 yrs	1.193	0.538	2.647	0.6634
DM DX ≥ 11 yrs	0.566	0.287	1.116	0.1004
Final Model
DM DX ≥ 11 yrs	0.518	0.289	0.925	0.0263
7. How comfortable would you be in discussing your health concerns with the care manager?
Male	1.672	0.811	3.447	0.1635
Age ≤ 50	1.457	0.379	5.606	0.5839
Age ≥ 71	0.773	0.390	1.533	0.4614
Married	1.156	0.568	2.354	0.6897
College education	1.254	0.619	2.537	0.5298
Graduate school education	0.908	0.328	2.518	0.8532
DM DX 6–10 yrs	2.801	0.969	8.098	0.0573
DM DX ≥ 11 yrs	0.522	0.257	1.064	0.0735
Final Model
DM DX 6–10 yrs	4.317	1.637	11.385	0.0031

Abbreviations: CI, confidence intervals; DM DX, years since first diagnosed with diabetes mellitus.