(1064) Evaluation of a Pharmacist’s Impact on the Utilization of Continuous Glucose Monitor for Diabetes Management in a Primary Care Setting

Objectives: Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices have been associated with reduced hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in both adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) treated with insulin when compared with self-monitored blood glucose (SMBG). The use of CGM device is also associated with increased time in the glycemic target range, reduced time in hyperglycemia, and reduced time in hypoglycemia in people with T1DM or T2DM. Given these benefits, CGM devices have emerged as a crucial component in the standard-of-care for people with T1DM or T2DM who are being treated with insulin therapy. Pharmacists have a pivotal role in diabetes care, especially in ambulatory care settings, where they are often directly involved in glucose data analysis and subsequent medication adjustments. Therefore, pharmacists are well-positioned to provide patient education and training on CGM use as well as interpreting CGM data to optimize drug therapy for diabetes. Currently, there is limited data regarding the extent of pharmacists' involvement in utilizing CGM devices for diabetes management.
The objective of the study is to evaluate the impact of a clinical pharmacist directed diabetes management service utilizing professional and personal CGM devices on patient outcomes within a primary care practice setting.

Methods: This is a pilot study. Inclusion criteria are patients aged 18 years and older with either T1DM or T2DM, clinically managed at a primary care practice, who were prescribed a professional or personal CGM device between October 1st, 2023 to March 1st, 2024. Eligibility for CGM use was determined by healthcare providers within the primary care practice or identified by the clinical pharmacist through internal reporting of patients not at HbA1c goals. Data points collected included patient reported sex, age, ethnicity, race, initial HbA1c, selected CGM type, time-in-range, time-below-range, time-above-range, glycemic variability, and mean glucose levels. Patients meeting the inclusion criteria who were prescribed a CGM device but were not followed by a clinical pharmacist were identified and separated from those who received diabetes management assistance from a clinical pharmacist.

Results: Descriptive statistics will be utilized for all collected variables. Inferential statistics will be applied for data analysis. An alpha level of 0.05 will be employed.

Conclusions: The anticipated findings of this study are expected to provide valuable insights into the pivotal role of clinical pharmacists in diabetes management, further solidifying their position as resources in enhancing patient care for individuals with diabetes.