Comparison of Nurse Practitioner and Physician Management of Diabetes in Japan

Abstract

The development of the nurse practitioner’s (NP’s) role in primary care has begun recently in Japan. This study compared the glycemic control of patients with type 2 diabetes treated by an NP or physician (MD) using a retrospective medical record review at a primary care clinic in a rural area of Japan from October 2017 to October 2022. The NP’s patients (n = 32) had poorer glycemic control at baseline than the MD’s (n = 43) (P < .001), but the MD and NP both managed diabetes appropriately. NP use in managing diabetes in primary care clinics could be expanded in Japan.