Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP James L. Holly, M.D. Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP


Diabetes Center of Excellence
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In 1998, SETMA designed the first disease management tool in our electronic medical records and it was for the treatment of diabetes.  In 2000, we began auditing our performance and reporting provider performance to improve our care of patients with diabetes.  In September, 2010, Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP (SETMA) announced the:

Over the next several years SETMA employed a Dietician and deployed an American Diabetes Association endorsed Diabetes Self Management Education program and employed an endocrinologist.

SETMA received NCQA Recognition for Diabetes care.

DiabetesThe National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has awarded SETMA I,  SETMA II and Mark A Wilson SETMA West their prestigious Diabetes Recognition Program designation for the period August 19, 2010 - August 19, 2013.  In 2013, SETMA applied and received renewal of that recognition for 2013-2016, adding SETMA Port Arthur and Orange to the distinction.  In April, 2016, SETMA will reapply for another three-year term of recognition.

NCQA states, "Those who achieve DRP Recognition show their peers, patients and others in the Diabetes community that they are part of an elite group that is publicly recognized for its skill in providing the highest-level diabetes care€¦NCQA in partnership with the American Diabetes Association (ADA) developed the Diabetes Recognition Program (DRP). This voluntary program is designed to recognize physicians and other clinicians, who use evidence-based measures and provide excellent care to their patients with diabetes."

SETMA is also recognized by NCQA for PC-MH and Heart/Stroke Risk (see:  http://jameslhollymd.com/accreditations). 

The Journey to SETMA’s Diabetes Center of Excellence

It was a seven-year journey. In 2003, SETMA’s CEO asked for the opportunity to present SETMA's Diabetes Disease Management Tool to a nationally recognized diabetes treatment organization. That opportunity was granted and SETMA’s CEO was allowed two hours to explain SETMA’s treatment of diabetes and SETMA’s diabetes prevention program.  The organization uses the same EHR vendor as SETMA and the response to that presentation was positive.  We continued our dialogue over the next four years and in 2007, a contingent from that organization visited SETMA.  The progress and excellence of SETMA’s care of patients with diabetes has resulted from this contact and from others.

Diabetes Center of Excellence's Mission and Vision

Since its founding in 1898, Diabetes Center of Excellence has constantly evolved to meet the ever-changing challenges of diabetes. Diabetes Center of Excellence is an institution on the front lines of the world epidemic of diabetes, leading the battle to conquer diabetes in all of its forms through cutting-edge research and innovative approaches to clinical care and education.

Every person at Joslin is dedicated to realizing our vision of a world without diabetes and its complications. We will achieve this vision through a relentless pursuit of our stated mission: To improve the lives of people with diabetes and its complications through innovative care, education, and research that will lead to prevention and cure of the disease.

SETMA's History of Treatment of Diabetes

SETMA had a ten-year history of continuous improvement in the treatment of patients with diabetes and identified three breakpoints in our treatment of diabetes, which resulted in our arrival at the point of all six SETMA clinics qualifying for NCQA's Diabetes Recognition Program. They are:

  • 2000 -- Diabetes Disease Management tool Development and deployment;
  • 2003 -- American Diabetes Association's certifying SETMA DSME and MNT program;
  • 2006 -- Recruitment of SETMA's first endocrinologist.

These breakpoints have been the capstones to ten years of continuous uninterrupted improvement in the care of patients with diabetes at SETMA. 

The Future

SETMA’s September, 2010 provider-education program, which was four-hours long, concentrated on:

  • Diabetes Screening Criteria and SETMA's Diabetes Prevention Program
  • Treatment Inertia and getting all patients to goal for blood sugar, hemoglobin A1C, LDL Cholesterol and blood pressure.
  • SETMA's Auditing Tools and how to use them to achieve number two above.
  • Bridges to Excellence (BTE) for hypertension, diabetes, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary artery disease.
  • Comparison of the quality metrics and goals for the care of patients with diabetes published by: HEDIS, NCQA, PQRS, AQA, NQF, PCPI, and BTE.

At the onset, SETMA believed that our efforts to improve the care of patients with diabetes would benefit all of our patients whatever their healthcare needs, and so it did.  The quality metrics which we track, audit, analyzes, publicly report and design quality improvement for taught us how to do this for other conditions as well.

With seven years of public reporting on provider performance posted on our website at Public Reporting - Reporting by Type, SETMA continues to pursue excellence in the care of patients with diabetes.