Physician experiences when discussing the need for additional oral medication with type 2 diabetes patients: Insights from the cross-national IntroDia® study

• Published in: Diabetes research and clinical practice 2019-02, Vol.148, p.179-188
• Main Authors: Down, Susan, Alzaid, Aus, Polonsky, William H., Belton, Anne, Edelman, Steven, Gamerman, Victoria, Nagel, Friederike, Lee, Jisoo, Emmerson, James, Capehorn, Matthew
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Patient survey; Patient-reported outcomes; Physician-patient communication; Psychological well-being; Type 2 diabetes
• ISSN: 0168-8227; 1872-8227
• DOI: 10.1016/j.diabres.2019.01.012

Physician-patient communication when discussing the need for additional oral medication for type 2 diabetes (add-on) may affect the self-care of people with this condition. We aimed to investigate physicians’ recalled experiences of the add-on consultation. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of physicians treating people with type 2 diabetes in 26 countries, as part of a large cross-national study of physician-patient communication during early treatment of type 2 diabetes (IntroDia®). The survey battery included novel questions about physician experiences at add-on and the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy. Of 9247 eligible physicians, 6753 responded (73.0% response rate). Most (82%) agreed that physician-patient discussions at add-on strongly influence patients’ disease acceptance and treatment adherence. Half the physicians reported ≥1 challenge in most or all add-on conversations, with a significant inverse relationship between frequency of challenges and Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy score (standardised β coefficient: −0.313; p