Challenges Faced by Australian Doctors when Discussing the Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) Diagnosis with Patients: Insights from a Cross-national Study (IntroDia<sup>TM</sup>) — ASN Events
  1. Schedule
  2. ADS Clinical Poster Viewing: Treatment Inertia
  3. Challenges Faced by Australian Doctors when Discussing the Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) Diagnosis with Patients: Insights from a Cross-national Study (IntroDiaTM)

Challenges Faced by Australian Doctors when Discussing the Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) Diagnosis with Patients: Insights from a Cross-national Study (IntroDiaTM) (#318)

Roger Chen 1 , Steven Sambevski 2 , William H Polonsky 3 , Anne Belton 4 5 , Susan Down 6 , Matthew Capehorn 7 8 , Victoria Gamerman 9 , Friederike Nagel 10 , Jisoo Lee 10 , Steven Edelman 11
  1. Concord Repatriation General Hospital, Concord, NSW, Australia
  2. Boehringer Ingelheim Pty Limited, North Ryde, Australia
  3. University of Califormia San Diego and Behavioural Diabetes Institute, San Diego, CA, USA
  4. International Diabetes Federation, Brussels, Belgium
  5. The Michener Institute for Applied Health Science, Toronto, Canada
  6. Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Bridgewater, United Kingdom
  7. National Obesity Forum, United Kingdom
  8. Clifton Medical Centre, Rotherham, United Kingdom
  9. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Ridgefield, CT, USA
  10. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, Ingelheim, Germany
  11. Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, University of California San Diego, and Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Diego, CA, USA

Doctor-patient communication at diagnosis of T2D may affect patients’ attitudes to the disease, self-care, and outcomes.  The IntroDiaTM study of 6,753 doctors and 10,139 patients with T2D in 26 countries is investigating early doctor-patient communication.  Initial global findings from IntroDiaTM have been reported (Polonsky, Diabetes 2014;63[Suppl.1A];LB14-15).  We present the initial findings for doctors in Australia.  Doctors completed an online survey that included assessment of doctor-patient communication at diagnosis and doctor empathy (Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy [JSPE; ©Jefferson Medical College.  All rights reserved.]).  All Australian doctors (N=257) were general practitioners; 75% were male with a median age of 49 years (range 29-65), and they attended a median of 60 T2D patients per month (range 15-980).  Most (90%; 88% globally) doctors agreed that the diagnosis conversation is important for patient disease acceptance and treatment adherence.  The most frequently encountered challenges in most or all diagnosis conversations among doctors were a lack of time (reported by 26%; 23% globally) and patients failing to sustain required behavioural changes (reported by 23%; 28% globally).  Patient understanding of the seriousness of T2D was not as great a challenge for doctors in Australia (reported by 12%; 23% globally).  Empathy scores among Australian doctors were similar to the global sample (mean Australian JSPE, 106.5; mean global JSPE, 103.3).  There was a significant negative relationship between doctor empathy and challenges overall (multiple regression adjusted for demographic and clinical practice variables; standardised β = ‑0.316, P<0.001; globally β = ‑0.273, P<0.001), suggesting that higher doctor empathy may result in fewer challenges.  Almost all doctors (93%) would like to have tools/support for the diagnosis conversation to help patients sustain required behavioural changes.  The insights from IntroDiaTM may help develop tools and support to improve the quality of care for Australian patients with T2D.

This study was sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly.