Transition of Patients with Type 2 Diabetes from Specialist to Primary Care: A Survey of Primary Care Physicians on the Usefulness of Tools for Transition

Abstract

Transition from specialty to primary care for patients with type 2 diabetes has not been well studied. Stable patients may be retained in specialty clinics due to concern over the maintenance of diabetes care post-discharge, thus limiting access to specialists for new referrals. Understanding primary care physicians’ perceptions of barriers to diabetes care and the helpfulness of existing tools used in the transition back to primary care is important for facilitating the transition process. Objectives were 1) to determine the perceived helpfulness of preselected tools that could be used in the transition of patients from specialist to primary care; 2) to identify the barriers to implementation of evidence-based diabetes care from the primary care perspective; and 3) to identify the tools used currently by primary care physicians during the transition process.