Integrated care has become the key to effectively managing chronic conditions like diabetes. At the heart of this shift is the increasing use of Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) systems, which provide invaluable real-time data, allowing healthcare providers, particularly endocrinologists and primary care physicians (PCPs), to offer tailored care for diabetes patients.
Becky Wagner, Director of Clinical Operations at MD Revolution sheds light on how CGM, combined with services like Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) and Chronic Care Management (CCM), can elevate patient care to new heights.
A Game-Changer for Endocrinologists
As diabetes specialists, endocrinologists manage a large volume of patients living with diabetes. Traditional methods, such as finger-stick glucose tests, provide only intermittent snapshots of a patient’s blood sugar levels. As Wagner explains, this creates inconsistencies that make it challenging to create an effective diabetic management plan. CGM, on the other hand, offers continuous glucose data, capturing trends and patterns that are otherwise missed. This empowers endocrinologists to adjust care plans in real time, offering a more precise and responsive approach to diabetes management.
“Our CGM program allows endocrinologists to gain valuable insight on the patient’s glucose trends and patterns, that they’ve not had access to before,” Wagner states. “This offering is really the first of its kind.” With accurate, consistent data, providers can now tailor care to address fluctuations and trends, such as high glucose levels in the morning, and adjust treatments accordingly.
The Synergy of CGM and RPM
Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) plays a crucial role alongside CGM, helping healthcare providers keep track of patients’ glucose levels remotely. Wagner emphasizes the holistic approach RPM offers when used in conjunction with CGM: “RPM and CGM go hand in hand… RPM manages and focuses on thresholds and values of that device.” This means that providers can focus not only on diabetes but also on patients’ overall well-being, monitoring key metrics that impact their health and intervening when necessary.
Moreover, Wagner highlights that incorporating Chronic Care Management (CCM) services into diabetes care helps to address patients’ broader health concerns. Through monthly
follow-ups, healthcare providers can manage a patient’s entire health profile, not just their diabetes. This ensures that patients are supported in areas like mental health, lifestyle changes, and other chronic conditions that can be exacerbated by diabetes.
“CCM allows us to call a patient at least once a month, follow up with them, see how they’re doing,” Wagner explains, allowing providers to address the whole patient rather than focusing on a single condition.
Expanding the Benefits to Primary Care Providers
While endocrinologists are the go-to specialists for diabetes management, Primary Care Providers (PCPs) are often the first point of contact for patients. With the integration of CGM and RPM, PCPs can widen their scope of services. This comprehensive data offers PCPs a more holistic view of their patients’ health, enabling them to manage diabetes alongside other chronic conditions.
Wagner points out the importance of PCPs in chronic care management: “PCPs are often the vanguard of care. The first person a patient will see is their PCP, and this allows them to expand the services they offer while improving patient outcomes.”
By using CGM data, PCPs can be proactive, detecting early signs of deterioration in their patients’ health and intervening quickly, helping to prevent complications and hospitalizations.
Benefits for Health Systems: Efficiency and Patient-Centered Care
For health systems managing large patient populations, CGM, RPM, and CCM are key to streamlining care across various chronic conditions. Wagner highlights MD Revolution’s RevCare platform, which offers health systems access to a cloud-based tool that seamlessly integrates patient data, supporting real-time monitoring and decision-making.
RevCare also helps reduce the workload of healthcare providers by offering additional clinical support, ensuring that only critical alerts and necessary actions are passed on to the care team. “We are the care in between patients’ office visits,” Wagner explains. This extra layer of monitoring means that patients are never left unattended, with clinicians receiving alerts when necessary.
Looking Ahead: Innovations in Diabetes Care
As technology advances, CGM systems and platforms like RevCare will continue to improve the ways in which we monitor and care for patients with diabetes. MD Revolution is already working on expanding its clinical team with certified diabetes educators, who will
bring specialized knowledge to further enhance patient care. “We plan to add additional clinical team members as resources for our CGM program,” says Wagner.
These innovations underscore the industry’s move toward proactive care, where continuous monitoring and data interpretation not only manage current conditions but also prevent complications and improve patients’ overall quality of life.
Conclusion
The integration of CGM, RPM, and CCM is revolutionizing the way healthcare providers manage diabetes care, offering real-time insights, tailored care plans, and a holistic approach to patient well-being. Whether for endocrinologists, PCPs, or health systems, these tools are transforming patient outcomes, making care more responsive, efficient, and ultimately, more patient-centered.
As Becky Wagner aptly concludes, “This movement is really shifting toward more proactive care, learning how best to place those care actions to give our patients the best preventative and proactive healthcare.”
