Type II diabetes has become a national public health threat. In the United States, approximately 25.8 million people meet the criteria for a diagnosis of diabetes. Diabetes often leads to blindness, heart and blood vessel disease, stroke, kidney failure, amputations, and nerve damage. As rates of diabetes increase, so, too, do associated direct and indirect costs. In 2007, diabetes cost $174 billion in the United States, both in terms of direct costs (such as hospitalizations, medical care, and treatment supplies) and indirect costs (such as disability payments and lost time from work).
MN Community Measurement, leader of the Aligning Forces for Quality Alliance in the state, set a goal to improve quality of care for patients with diabetes using a composite measure. A composite score is a combined metric useful in assessing quality of care. Physicians and health plans worked together with MN Community Measurement to develop the D5 composite measure to set guidelines for providers and consumers on optimal diabetes care. The D5 indicators include:
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a blood pressure reading lower than 130/80,
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a low-density (LDL), or bad cholesterol, reading lower than 100 mg/dL,
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blood sugar or HbA1c reading of less than 8 percent,
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living tobacco-free,
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and taking a daily dose of aspirin as appropriate.
The diabetes composite measure has a ripple effect in Minnesota—the incidence of diabetes-related complications decreased over time. “The composite model captures more critical data during a single visit so you're less likely to lose people through the cracks because one practice checked for cholesterol while another did not," said Jim Chase, president of MN Community Measurement.
