Impact of Family Medicine Training on the Quality of Care for patients of diabetes in Saudi Arabia

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the challenging health problems worldwide. Primary care centers manage and treat most of DM cases. Diabetes requires ongoing, and evidence-based health care which should be provided by highly qualified physicians.

Aim: This study aims at evaluating the Family Medicine training efficacy on the quality of care for diabetic patients.

Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study conducted among patients with DM at the AlJafer training center situated in AlAhssa, Saudi Arabia. The data of diabetic patients who were followed up initially with general practitioners (GPs) and later with family physicians (FPs) collected from the patients' electronic files. Clinical parameters including HbA1c, blood pressure, total cholesterol, LDL, and statin, aspirin initiation measured during initial visits and follow-ups to compare the quality of diabetic care between the two groups (FPs vs. GPs). All statistical analyses carried using SPSS version 21.

Results: Eighty-three patients were included in the study. Regarding the measurement process, FPs more likely to measure HbA1c twice a year than GPs (P:<0.001). The number of patients with HbA1c level >8% decreased significantly during the period of follow-up with FPs (P:<0.001). Furthermore, a significant number of patients meet the BP target ≤130/85 during the follow-up period with FPs. The statin initiation is substantially achieved more by FPs (P < 0.001).

Conclusion: Family medicine training has a significant influence on the clinical outcomes of patients with DM. This study's findings suggest that FPs ensure a better quality of care in terms of clinical and process measures.