Describing the application and barriers of pharmacist‐led professional continuous glucose monitoring in the ambulatory care setting

Abstract

AbstractIntroductionAdvances in technology for continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) contribute to the care of persons with diabetes and CGM systems are recommended in multiple guidelines. There are limited studies describing CGM use by clinical pharmacists in the ambulatory care setting.ObjectivesThe primary objective of this study is to identify and describe the current use, application, and barriers of CGM by clinical pharmacists in the ambulatory care setting. Secondary objectives include identifying the prevalence of professional CGM use by clinical pharmacists, recognizing specific barriers faced by pharmacists when implementing professional CGM into clinical practice, and determining interest in professional CGM implementation by ambulatory care pharmacists as an alternative for patients unable to afford personal CGM.MethodsThis was a self‐administered, voluntary, web‐based questionnaire distributed to 2207 ambulatory care pharmacists. Questions were stratified to identify the clinical use and barriers for those who do and do not use professional CGM, respectively. The survey was active for 9 weeks and results from the survey were analyzed based on question type.ResultsOne hundred and eighty five survey responses were included in the study results. Most participants (70.8%) indicated currently working in a primary care clinic, and 8.1% indicated working in an endocrinology office. Results identified that 18.9% of participants use personal CGM and 35.1% use professional CGM to facilitate the management of persons with diabetes. The most common barriers to professional CGM implementation include lack of funding for startup costs (65.9%), lack of time for device placement and result interpretation (45.8%), and unpredictable patient follow‐up (48.3%).ConclusionStudy participants indicated that the majority of patients they manage have diabetes; however, lack of education and training on device use, data interpretation, and reimbursement opportunities were commonly cited barriers to CGM use. Additional training opportunities should be considered to facilitate the implementation of CGM by ambulatory care pharmacists into clinical practice.