Impact of the Washington State Diabetes Collaborative on Patient Health and Economic Outcomes

How do the clinics and primary care physicians participating in Collaborative III of the Washington State Diabetes Collaborative affect the health and economic outcomes of diabetic patients? The collaborative combines elements from Collaboratives of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and the Chronic Care Model developed by Edward Wagner and colleagues. The researchers captured the later-stage results of the collaborative, “thus offering an impact evaluation of a mature system-change model.” In particular, the researchers explained how different components of the collaborative approach to diabetes care management directly affect health and economic outcomes (utilization and costs). The objective of the study was to better inform health plans, public payers, health care providers, and employers about the economic impact of the collaborative, to inform their quality improvement, benefit design, and payment decisions for diabetic patients.