Medical Foundation Starts Campaign to Improve Diabetes Care

With Type 2 diabetes among the most prominent chronic diseases, the latest campaign  (opens in a new tab) by the American Medical Group Association (AMGA) Foundation promises to help out a lot of people.

The foundation, AMGA’s philanthropic arm, is launching Diabetes: Together 2 Goal  (opens in a new tab), a collaboration between medical groups, local health systems, and industry partners that aims to improve the care of 1 million Type 2 diabetes patients by 2019.

Dr. Donald W. Fisher, president and CEO of AMGA and secretary of the AMGA Foundation board, expressed pride in the launch of a new campaign.

“We strongly believe that over the next three years and with the dedication and commitment of some of the largest and most prestigious health care systems in the country, we will see improved care among people with Type 2 diabetes and set them on a better path to live longer, healthier lives,” Fisher said in a news release  (opens in a new tab).

It’s the second such effort by the AMGA Foundation to tackle a chronic disease. The group recently concluded its Measure Up/Pressure Down campaign  (opens in a new tab), which focused on blood pressure control. That initiative included more than 140 medical groups and health systems.

Already, Together 2 Goal has more than 100 AMGA members working on tackling Type 2 diabetes in some way, shape, or form, with many committing to implement at least one of the 11 “campaign planks,” or recommended care processes.

Several associations are joining AMGA Foundation’s campaign, including (among others) the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, American Association of Diabetes Educators, American College of Physicians, American Diabetes Association, American Kidney Fund, and Behavioral Diabetes Institute.

As for corporate partners, the campaign has already gathered industry giants such as Novo Nordisk, Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems, Optum, Merck, and Sanofi. The District of Columbia Department of Health is also listed as a corporate partner.

(iStock/Thinkstock)