Program evaluation of Sea Mar’s Chronic Care Program for Latino and Caucasian patients with type 2 diabetes: providers and staff perspectives

PROBLEM STATEMENT Unprecedented consumption of health care resources in the USA coupled with increasing rates of chronic disease has fueled pursuit of improved models of health care delivery. The Chronic Care Model provides an organizational framework for chronic care management and practice improvement. Sea Mar, a community health care organization in Washington state, implemented the Chronic Care Model, but has not evaluated the outcomes related to provider and staff satisfaction. The specific aim of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Chronic Care Model with the addition of the Chronic Care Coordinator role. APPROACH A descriptive method was used, which incorporated quantitative, and qualitative data from providers and clinic staff collected through a Web-based survey consisting of Likert-type questions sent via an electronic link. RESULTS This evaluation identified the strengths of and barriers to the chronic care model with a focus on provider and staff satisfaction regarding patient care since the addition of the Chronic Care Coordinator role. We found a high appreciation (94%) and acceptance of the role; 80% agreed that the Chronic Care Coordinator was well-integrated into clinic operations. Major strengths of the program included more patient education, better follow-up, and improved team communications. Barriers to success included limited provider access, confusion regarding role expectations of the Chronic Care Coordinator, inconsistent communications, and Chronic Care Coordinator turnover. CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS Our findings help to validate the importance of community health organizations such as Sea Mar, the utility of the chronic care model, and the potential value for specific roles such as the Chronic Care Coordinator to positively impact quality of care by helping to empower patients to improve self-management and ultimately impact patient outcomes. However, future studies involving larger samples are needed to further explore themes among staff and patients.