Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study

BackgroundSince the rapid widespread uptake in 2020, the use of telemedicine to deliver diabetes specialty care has persisted. However, evidence evaluating patient and clinician perspectives on benefits, shortcomings, and approaches to improve telemedicine care for type 2 dia...

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Main Authors: Margaret Zupa, Megan Hamm, Lane Alexander, Ann-Marie Rosland
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: JMIR Publications 2025-03-01
Series:JMIR Diabetes
Online Access:https://diabetes.jmir.org/2025/1/e60765
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author Margaret Zupa
Megan Hamm
Lane Alexander
Ann-Marie Rosland
author_facet Margaret Zupa
Megan Hamm
Lane Alexander
Ann-Marie Rosland
author_sort Margaret Zupa
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundSince the rapid widespread uptake in 2020, the use of telemedicine to deliver diabetes specialty care has persisted. However, evidence evaluating patient and clinician perspectives on benefits, shortcomings, and approaches to improve telemedicine care for type 2 diabetes is limited. ObjectiveThis study aims to assess clinician and patient perspectives on specific benefits and limitations of current telemedicine care delivery for type 2 diabetes and views on approaches to enhance telemedicine effectiveness for patients who rely on it. MethodsWe conducted semistructured qualitative interviews with diabetes specialty clinicians and adults with type 2 diabetes. We used a qualitative description approach to characterize participant perspectives on care delivery for type 2 diabetes via telemedicine. ResultsBoth clinicians (n=15) and patients (n=13) identify significant benefits of telemedicine in overcoming both physical (geographic and transportation) and scheduling (work commitments and wait times) barriers to specialty care for type 2 diabetes. In addition, telemedicine may enhance communication around diabetes care by improving information sharing between patients and clinicians. However, clinicians identify limited availability of home blood glucose data and vital signs as factors, which impair the optimal management of type 2 diabetes and related comorbid conditions via telemedicine. Previsit preparation, involvement of multidisciplinary providers, and frequent brief check-ins were identified by patients and clinicians as potential strategies to improve the quality of telemedicine care for adults with type 2 diabetes. ConclusionsPatients and clinicians identify key strengths of telemedicine in enhancing access to diabetes specialty care for adults with type 2 diabetes and describe approaches to ensure that telemedicine delivers high-quality diabetes care to patients who rely on it.
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spelling doaj-art-cd22b9ab7e23486ea670944e5f13d1912025-08-20T02:57:30ZengJMIR PublicationsJMIR Diabetes2371-43792025-03-0110e6076510.2196/60765Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative StudyMargaret Zupahttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-8244-9295Megan Hammhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-7842-5290Lane Alexanderhttps://orcid.org/0009-0006-5610-2390Ann-Marie Roslandhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5809-5861 BackgroundSince the rapid widespread uptake in 2020, the use of telemedicine to deliver diabetes specialty care has persisted. However, evidence evaluating patient and clinician perspectives on benefits, shortcomings, and approaches to improve telemedicine care for type 2 diabetes is limited. ObjectiveThis study aims to assess clinician and patient perspectives on specific benefits and limitations of current telemedicine care delivery for type 2 diabetes and views on approaches to enhance telemedicine effectiveness for patients who rely on it. MethodsWe conducted semistructured qualitative interviews with diabetes specialty clinicians and adults with type 2 diabetes. We used a qualitative description approach to characterize participant perspectives on care delivery for type 2 diabetes via telemedicine. ResultsBoth clinicians (n=15) and patients (n=13) identify significant benefits of telemedicine in overcoming both physical (geographic and transportation) and scheduling (work commitments and wait times) barriers to specialty care for type 2 diabetes. In addition, telemedicine may enhance communication around diabetes care by improving information sharing between patients and clinicians. However, clinicians identify limited availability of home blood glucose data and vital signs as factors, which impair the optimal management of type 2 diabetes and related comorbid conditions via telemedicine. Previsit preparation, involvement of multidisciplinary providers, and frequent brief check-ins were identified by patients and clinicians as potential strategies to improve the quality of telemedicine care for adults with type 2 diabetes. ConclusionsPatients and clinicians identify key strengths of telemedicine in enhancing access to diabetes specialty care for adults with type 2 diabetes and describe approaches to ensure that telemedicine delivers high-quality diabetes care to patients who rely on it.https://diabetes.jmir.org/2025/1/e60765
spellingShingle Margaret Zupa
Megan Hamm
Lane Alexander
Ann-Marie Rosland
Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study
JMIR Diabetes
title Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study
title_full Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study
title_fullStr Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study
title_full_unstemmed Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study
title_short Patient and Clinician Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Current Telemedicine Approaches in Endocrinology Care for Type 2 Diabetes: Qualitative Study
title_sort patient and clinician perspectives on the effectiveness of current telemedicine approaches in endocrinology care for type 2 diabetes qualitative study
url https://diabetes.jmir.org/2025/1/e60765
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