A comparison of diabetes care in rural and urban medical clinics in Alabama

This study sought to determine the differences in the level of diabetes care of patients in a rural family practice clinic and an urban internal medicine clinic in Alabama. Medical records of patients with diabetes were reviewed and management practices were compared to current American Diabetes Association (ADA) standards of care. The rural practice had fewer patients at goal Alc, goal LDL, and goal blood pressure. Rural patients were also less likely to receive screening and preventative services such as lipid profiles, eye examinations, microalbumin screening, aspirin therapy, and vaccinations than urban patients. Although, adherence to the ADA standards of care was lower with rural patients, the results suggest that there exists significant opportunity to improve the delivery of diabetes care services to both patient populations.