Background:
There are approximately 35.2 million adults in the US grappling with Type 2 diabetes and an alarming 96 million adults who face prediabetes. Despite its demonstrated effectiveness, the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP) struggled to engage a significant portion of the prediabetic population, reaching only 0.52% from 2012 to 2019. Sinai Urban Health Institute (SUHI) operates within this challenging landscape in the Chicagoland area in an attempt to combat diabetes.
Challenge:
SUHI, an NDPP provider, faced the uphill task of enrolling a substantial number of prediabetic patients into its NDPP cohorts. Seeking innovation, SUHI collaborated with Grapefruit Health in October 2022 to revamp and test a new enrollment strategy.
Solution:
Grapefruit Health swiftly deployed 12 nursing students from the Chicagoland area within four weeks to initiate connections with prediabetic patients. Over an 18-week period, the team successfully engaged with 1,046 out of 1,651 unique qualifying patients. Assessments were completed for 683 patients, with 286 expressing interest in joining NDPP offered by SUHI.
Results:
The impact extended beyond patient enrollment. One hundred percent of the nursing students recommended Grapefruit Health to their peers, citing improved therapeutic communication skills and career readiness. SUHI experienced a transformative shift, freeing up valuable time for their team of lifestyle coaches to focus on patients actively interested in enrolling in the NDPP and delivering NDPP. This strategic partnership not only enhanced DPP enrollment but also elevated employee satisfaction.
Conclusion:
SUHI's forward-thinking collaboration with Grapefruit Health exemplifies an innovative approach to addressing the challenges of NDPP enrollment. By leveraging the expertise of nursing students and streamlining the engagement process, SUHI achieved notable success in reaching and enrolling prediabetic patients, signaling a promising future model of recruitment for diabetes prevention initiatives.