Meaningful Use of Electronic Medical Recording to Improve Diabetic Treatment Compliance of American Diabetic Association Treatment Standards

Diabetes affects approximately 10% of the American population with an annual expenditure of approximately $174 billion dollars. The utilization of electronic medical records (EMR) combined with the meaningful use (MU) initiative may ensure that diabetic patients receive the recommended preventative care. Dorthea Orem\u27s self-care deficit theory and the transtheoretical model of behavior change was utilized to design this quality improvement project. Medical professionals at a small private practice received education on American Diabetic Association (ADA) treatment standards and how to use the EMR system to track patients receiving the recommended diabetes care. The project question examined the effectiveness of provider education on improving ADA treatment standards and on using the EMR system to adhere to MU objectives of providing diabetic preventative care measures of annual dilated eye examinations, annual microalbumin levels, and annual microfilament foot examinations. A convenience sample of 3 providers and 309 patients was used and data were collected on Excel spreadsheets pre and post intervention through the Crystal Reports system to assess the percent improvement in the rates of preventative care. An impact evaluation revealed that the project achieved its objectives showing a 5.07% increase in diabetic preventative care. The program evaluation determined that the project is worth sustaining in the clinical setting as it provides a practical and economical way of improving diabetic patient care. This improvement project suggests that MU and adherence to ADA treatment standards has the potential to make a positive social change through increasing the amount of diabetic patients receiving preventative care