Impact of a Pharmacist-Led Diabetes Clinic in a Correctional Setting

Incarcerated patients often have a high disease burden and poor access to care in the community. In an effort to ensure glycemic control and appropriate initiation of statin therapy for cardiovascular (CV) risk reduction, a pilot program of pharmacist-led diabetes clinic (PLDC) was implemented in a large inner-city jail. A pre-post study was conducted as a quality improvement initiative. Inclusion criteria were inmate-patients (IPs) diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus, treated with oral antidiabetic medications, managed by PLDC, and with at least 2 glycosylated hemoglobin A_1cs (HbA_1c). The primary outcome was the change in HbA_1c after PLDC. The secondary outcome was the frequency of statin therapy. A total of 240 IPs met the inclusion criteria. Mean HbA_1c was 8.2% at baseline and 7.6% at the last follow-up encounter, a change of -0.7% (95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.41% to -0.93%). The most dramatic change was seen in the group with the highest initial HbA_1c (HbA_1c ≥ 10%), from a mean baseline HbA_1c of 11.6% to 8.5%, a change of -3.1% (95% CI: -2.5% to -3.7%). IPs with an initial HbA_1c between 7% and 9.9% showed a change in mean HbA_1c from 8.4% to 8.0%, a change of -0.4% (95% CI: -0.1% to -0.7%). Of the 240 included IPs, 141 were not on a statin at baseline. The frequency of statin use increased by 50.4% after PLDC. PLDC significantly improved glycemic control and guideline concordance for CV risk reduction. Adding PLDC to multidisciplinary care teams has the potential to improve population health outcomes for this medically complex, yet underserved patient population.