Health Care Provider Management of Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Analysis of Trends in Attitudes and Practices

AbstractObjective: To identify attitudes and practices of endocrinologists (ENDOs), family practitioners (FPs), internists (IMs), primary care nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), certified diabetes educators (CDEs), retail pharmacists (R-PHs), and hospital pharmacists (H-PHs) with respect to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) management; to compare current study data with results from a similar 2011 study. Methods: A nominal group technique focus group identified barriers to optimal management of patients with T2DM. Five case-vignette surveys were created, 1 for each group of health care professionals (HCPs): ENDOs; FPs and IMs; NPs and PAs; CDEs; and R-PHs and H-PHs. Surveys were tailored to each group. Versions were as similar as possible to each other and to the 2011 surveys to facilitate comparisons. Questions assessed guideline familiarity; knowledge of insulin formulations, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors; patterns of refer...