OBJECTIVES

Prediabetes prevention is predominantly performed by physicians in Spain. However, given the closer proximity of community pharmacists to the general population, recent initiatives have been implemented to engage community pharmacists in prediabetes screening. The Detecta2 study aims to describe the routine clinical practice of both physicians and pharmacists in prediabetes prevention and their perception about the role of pharmacists for this purpose.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey addressed to Spanish healthcare professionals (HCPs) -physicians and community pharmacists- was conducted between May and November 2018. Two questionnaires were designed based on a literature review and expert opinion: an electronic one (physicians) and face-to-face or telephone interviews (pharmacists). The survey included open-/closed-ended questions (dichotomous or multiple choice), numerical rating scales (from 0 to 10) and 5-point Likert-scale items (from strongly disagree to strongly agree).

RESULTS

A total of 410 physicians and 393 community pharmacists completed the questionnaires. The reported use of clinical guidelines among HCPs was scarce (physicians-51.5%; pharmacists-23.2%). A relative low proportion of them did not define prediabetes according to guidelines for fasting plasma glucose (physicians-60.5%; pharmacists-6.8%), HbA1c (physicians-55.0%; pharmacists-20.8%) and oral glucose tolerance test (physicians-50.89%; pharmacists-18.47%). Most physicians (95.9%) and pharmacists (42.1%) use screening strategies. Of them, systematic strategies are used by 18.9% and 2.5%, respectively. Although most HCPs (n≥75%) considered that inadequate information/education of people with prediabetes might result in an increased risk of developing diabetes, educational procedures are not implemented consistently (physicians-58.3%; pharmacists-27.9%), mainly due to lack of time (physicians-75.4%; pharmacists-61.0%) and resources (physicians-67.8%; pharmacists-35.3%). Most HCPs (n≥75%) considered useful the role of community pharmacists in preventing prediabetes/diabetes.

CONCLUSIONS

A holistic approach involving physicians and pharmacists was considered convenient for prediabetes/diabetes prevention. To this end, HCPs practice should be aligned to clinical guidelines as well as educational strategies need to be promoted