The COVID-19 pandemic has made traditional doctor visits less accessible for patients, forcing them to seek out telemedicine and other digital solutions to receive necessary care. According to a recent JAMA study, there have been substantial decreases in primary care delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the rapid spike in virtual care utilization.
More than 200 healthcare professionals from 47 countries predicted that diabetes would be the condition most impacted by the reduction in healthcare resources. This is due to diabetes being such a complex chronic disease that requires active engagement and management from its patients — like reducing stress, taking proper medications, monitoring blood sugar levels, and getting routine lab tests.
Turning to Digital Care Platforms
Understanding the connection between day-to-day choices and glucose levels, allows patients to adapt to new care opportunities. Effective digital diabetes care can serve as the connective tissue diabetes patients need to thrive and improve their health, especially under today’s circumstances.
With that said, virtual diabetes care has been expanded to include features like glucose monitoring with proactive feedback from a health coach, as well as personalized resources to support those with diabetes as they continue to navigate through pandemic-related challenges.
The CDC strongly recommends Diabetes, Self-Management Education and Support (DSMES) as a cost-effective tool for employees to improve A1c levels, blood pressure, medication adherence, as well as reduced hospital admissions and healthcare costs. However, the caveat — access remains a major challenge.
Human connection is essential to our mental and physical health. Promoting and encouraging your employees to invest in deeply personalized virtual care solutions, can ultimately result in better health outcomes and reduce their overall out-of-pocket costs.
Information provided by Employee Benefit News.