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Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has presented unique challenges for people with diabetes, in addition to their high-risk stratification for infection. Supporting people with diabetes to self-care has been critical to reduce their risk of severe infection. This global pandemic has present...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Quinn, Lauren M, Davies, Melanie J, Hadjiconstantinou, Michelle
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: JMIR Publications 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7486671/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32716898
http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/21609
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author Quinn, Lauren M
Davies, Melanie J
Hadjiconstantinou, Michelle
author_facet Quinn, Lauren M
Davies, Melanie J
Hadjiconstantinou, Michelle
author_sort Quinn, Lauren M
collection PubMed
description The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has presented unique challenges for people with diabetes, in addition to their high-risk stratification for infection. Supporting people with diabetes to self-care has been critical to reduce their risk of severe infection. This global pandemic has presented an opportunity to digitalize diabetes care and rapidly implement virtual diabetes clinics, with the aim of optimizing diabetes management and well-being, while keeping patients safe. We performed a rapid review of the literature to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of virtual clinics in diabetes care before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and have combined these findings with our own reflections in practice. We identified examples demonstrating safety and feasibility of virtual diabetes clinics, which aligns with our own clinical experience during the pandemic. The advantages of virtual clinics include reduced treatment burden, improved therapeutic alliances, societal and psychological benefits, and in our experience, innovative solutions to overcome the challenges presented by the transition from in-person to virtual care. We have provided three infographics to illustrate lessons learned and key recommendations, including steps to establish a virtual diabetes clinic, a checklist guide for health care professionals conducting virtual clinics, and a patient guide for making the most out of the virtual clinic. It is important to continue adapting to this pandemic and to make technology a sustainable option for the future of diabetes care.
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spelling pubmed-74866712020-09-21 Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective Quinn, Lauren M Davies, Melanie J Hadjiconstantinou, Michelle J Med Internet Res Viewpoint The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has presented unique challenges for people with diabetes, in addition to their high-risk stratification for infection. Supporting people with diabetes to self-care has been critical to reduce their risk of severe infection. This global pandemic has presented an opportunity to digitalize diabetes care and rapidly implement virtual diabetes clinics, with the aim of optimizing diabetes management and well-being, while keeping patients safe. We performed a rapid review of the literature to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of virtual clinics in diabetes care before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and have combined these findings with our own reflections in practice. We identified examples demonstrating safety and feasibility of virtual diabetes clinics, which aligns with our own clinical experience during the pandemic. The advantages of virtual clinics include reduced treatment burden, improved therapeutic alliances, societal and psychological benefits, and in our experience, innovative solutions to overcome the challenges presented by the transition from in-person to virtual care. We have provided three infographics to illustrate lessons learned and key recommendations, including steps to establish a virtual diabetes clinic, a checklist guide for health care professionals conducting virtual clinics, and a patient guide for making the most out of the virtual clinic. It is important to continue adapting to this pandemic and to make technology a sustainable option for the future of diabetes care. JMIR Publications 2020-08-28 /pmc/articles/PMC7486671/ /pubmed/32716898 http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/21609 Text en ©Lauren M Quinn, Melanie J Davies, Michelle Hadjiconstantinou. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 28.08.2020. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on http://www.jmir.org/, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.
spellingShingle Viewpoint
Quinn, Lauren M
Davies, Melanie J
Hadjiconstantinou, Michelle
Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective
title Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective
title_full Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective
title_fullStr Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective
title_full_unstemmed Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective
title_short Virtual Consultations and the Role of Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic for People With Type 2 Diabetes: The UK Perspective
title_sort virtual consultations and the role of technology during the covid-19 pandemic for people with type 2 diabetes: the uk perspective
topic Viewpoint
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7486671/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32716898
http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/21609
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