Impact of an intelligent chronic disease management system on patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in a Beijing community

BACKGROUND: Rapid demographic and economic changes have made chronic disease the number one health issue in China, contributing to more than 80% of the country’s 10.3 million annual deaths and nearly 70% of its total disease burden (Wang et al., Toward a Healthy and Harmonious Life in China: Stemming the Rising Tide of Non-Communicable Diseases, 2011; Yip and Hsiao, Lancet 384: 805-18, 2014). Diabetes is a major contributor to the chronic disease burden and is experienced by nearly 11% of the adult population of China (Yang et al., N Engl J Med 362:1090-101, 2010). In response to the challenges of chronic disease, the Chinese government initiated comprehensive health care reforms nationwide in 2009. A key measure was a hierarchical diagnosis and treatment system for monitoring and reducing chronic diseases and improving the community health service system (Barber et al., Health Policy Plan 29:367-78, 2014). Primary hospitals, such as community health service centers, are the main gatekeepers for management of diabetes and other chronic diseasesin China. In recognition of the need for a more patient-centered approach, the Chinese government has piloted a program incorporating methods of diabetes self-management for chronic care: the Happy Life Club (Browning et al., Front in Public Health 2:181, 2015). This program is modeled on a similar program developed in Australia (Kelly et al., Aust J Prim Health 9:186-9, 2003). The ICDMS is an important tool in the implementation of patient-centered programs targeting chronic health issues, and its success is determined by factors, such as frequent contact between patients and doctors and effective website training for patients. This retrospective study used de-identified data from the Fangzhuang (Beijing) intelligent chronic disease management system (ICDMS) database to evaluate the effect of an intelligent chronic disease management system on selected Beijing community patients who have type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: A comparative study before and after ICDMS implementation was performed to evaluate the effect of ICDMS on the rates of follow-up and laboratory examinations, measurement rates of blood glucose and lipids, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and blood lipid levels, as well as the corresponding health parameters. Continuous variables and categorical variables were analyzed using paired t-test and McNemar’s tests, respectively. RESULTS: A total of 2451 T2DM patients met inclusion/exclusion criteria. Compared with the pre-index period, the laboratory examination, rates of blood glucose and blood lipids increased significantly in the post-index period (p < 0.001). Triglyceride (TC) levels decreased significantly from 5.22 mmol/L to 5.11 mmol/L (p < 0.05), and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) levels increased significantly from 1.35 mmol/L to 1.48 mmol/L (p < 0.05). The control rate of TC increased from 24.86 to 29.76% (p = 0.079). The control rate of low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) increased from 12.16 to 13.97% (p = 0.421), while the control rate of HDL-C increased significantly from 68.60 to 78.77%. Importantly, Compared with the patients with HbA1C above 7% in the pre-index period, the mean HbA1c decreased significantly from 7.84 to 6.94%((p < 0.001) in the post-index period, and the control rate of HbA1c was 57.43%. CONCLUSIONS: The intelligent chronic disease management system is an effective tool in the management of T2DM and should be promoted by the Community Health Service Center in China as well as in other developing countries.