The following is a summary of “Optimizing the frequency of physician encounters in follow-up care for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a systematic review,” published in the January 2024 issue of Primary Care by Xu, et al.

Decisions regarding the frequency of physician encounters for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have significant implications for both patient health outcomes and the healthcare system burden. However, clear guidelines on the optimal intervals for physician encounters are lacking in most clinical settings. For a study, researchers sought to systematically review existing evidence on different frequencies of physician encounters among T2DM patients.

A systematic search was conducted in MEDLINE Ovid, Embase Ovid, and the Cochrane Library from database inception to March 25, 2022. Studies evaluating various visit frequencies for follow-up care in T2DM patients were included. Studies focusing on encounters led by non-physicians or those in acute care settings were excluded. Citation searching was performed via Google Scholar on identified papers post-screening. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane RoB2 tool for randomized controlled trials and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for cohort studies. Findings were summarized narratively.

Out of 6,363 records from the database search and 231 references from the citation search, 12 articles were eligible for in-depth review. The results indicated that for patients not achieving cardiometabolic control, increasing encounter frequency could improve medication adherence, expedite the achievement of treatment targets, and enhance quality of life. Conversely, for patients already meeting treatment targets, less frequent encounters were comparable to intensive encounters in maintaining cardiometabolic control. Moreover, they could substantially reduce healthcare costs without significantly compromising quality of care or patient satisfaction.

Existing evidence suggests that the optimal frequency of physician encounters for T2DM patients should be individualized and stratified by patients’ risk levels based on cardiometabolic control. The approach can guide the differential scheduling of physician encounters in follow-up care. Further research was warranted to optimize physician encounter frequency for this diverse and sizable population.

Reference: bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-024-02277-9