Pharmacists Providing Education to Help Optimize Frequency of Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose in Non-Insulin Dependent Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Objective: To determine if a pharmacist-led educational intervention could influence the frequency of self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus not using insulin. Methods: Patients with type 2 diabetes not using insulin were recruited from a single community pharmacy in Saskatchewan. Participants were informed of the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) SMBG recommendations, and instructed to carry out SMBG as per their usual practice during week 1 (run-in phase), and in the manner they preferred during weeks 2 through 4 (test phase), based on the information provided regarding SMBG frequency. A questionnaire was administered at study-end to assess receptiveness to the SMBG recommendations, and a follow-up phone interview was carried out 3 months after study completion to assess SMBG frequency. Results: A trend in decreasing weekly strip use was observed among the 19 subjects who consented to participate (228 strips during week 1 vs. 141, 106, and 109 in weeks 2 through 4 respectively; Friedman test p<0.007). SMBG (self-recorded) was carried out a median of 9 times per week during the run-in phase vs. 4 times per week during the test-phase and the difference was significant (Wilcoxon signed rank test p<0.001). The majority of participants (12 of 18; 67%) reported that they continued less frequent SMBG similar to their patterns during the test phase, 3 months after study completion. Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that community pharmacists may be able to influence the frequency of SMBG according to the CADTH recommendations. (C) 2012 Canadian Diabetes Association