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


Your Life Your Health - Joslin Diabetes Center at Harvard University and The SETMA Foundation
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James L. Holly,M.D.
February 28, 2008
Your Life Your Health - The Examiner

In 1898, Dr. Elliott P. Joslin began his private medical practice in Boston, Massachusetts. Today his name is associated with excellence in the treatment of diabetes and in cutting-edge research which is advancing the frontiers for the treatment of diabetes. The accompanying insert gives the history of the Diabetes Center of Excellence. In 1987, the Joslin Affiliated Centers Program began with initial centers opening in Florida and Indianapolis. Currently there are 25 Joslin affiliates located throughout the country and the world (for a list of those affiliates see the insert). In March of 2008, the latest Diabetes Center of Excellence affiliate location will be formalized. It is Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP (SETMA) in Beaumont, Texas through The SETMA Foundation. This spring, a formal press conference and open house will be held for both the Diabetes Center of Excellence Affiliate at SETMA and for The SETMA Foundation.

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.

Joslin & Harvard Medical School

Joslin's affiliation with Harvard Medical School gives Joslin researchers opportunities to collaborate with other investigators with complementary interests and expertise through the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Center on Immunological Tolerance in Type-1 Diabetes at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute.

The JDRF Harvard Center opened in August 2004 under the leadership of Directors Diane J. Mathis, Ph.D., and Christophe Benoist, M.D., Ph.D., who hold the William T. Young Chair in Diabetes Research at Joslin and head Joslin's Section on Immunology and Immunogenetics.

JDRF Harvard Center researchers are studying how to re-establish immune tolerance through eight research projects and three supporting cores. Lastly, most Joslin researchers and clinicians have academic appointments at Harvard Medical School and several are involved in Ph.D. training at the medical school.

Diabetes Center of Excellence Affiliate at SETMA, Beaumont, Texas

The idea of a Beaumont affiliated location for the Diabetes Center of Excellence grew out of a presentation four years ago at the Diabetes Center of Excellence in Boston by one of SETMA's partners. In a desire to improve the care of patients with diabetes, SETMA presented its electronic diabetes disease management program to several Joslin staff members. Joslin uses the same electronic medical records software program as SETMA. Out of that meeting, a dialogue developed between Joslin and SETMA. In October, 2007, SETMA launch the SETMA Diabetes Center of Excellence and contacted Joslin about becoming an affiliate. After several conference telephone conversations, in January, 2008, a team from Joslin visited SETMA and extended an invitation for SETMA to become an affiliated location.

The SETMA Foundation

In February, the partners of SETMA voted unanimously to accept the invitation from Joslin and to initiate a Joslin affiliated location through The SETMA Foundation. The SETMA Foundation was also envisioned by the partners of SETMA four years ago. The original vision was to contribute and to receive tax deductible funds for the support of healthcare and healthcare education for SETMA's patients who could not afford their care. That vision was expanded to include the advancement of excellence in the care of diabetes in Southeast Texas through the SETMA foundation funding and supporting a Joslin affiliate in Southeast Texas at Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP. Thus far the partners of SETMA have contributed $50,000 to the Foundation and have plans to contribute another $50,000 this spring.

Diabetes Center of Excellence Affiliate at SETMA

The organization and structure of the Diabetes Center of Excellence affiliate at Southeast Texas Medical Associates will be as follows:

  • Medical Director - Dr. Ahmed, Endocrinology
  • Co-Director and Eye Center - Dr. Luviano, Ophthalmologist
  • Podiatry, Dr. Carmack, Podiatrist
  • Lipid Clinic - Dr. Murphy, Board Certified in Lipids
  • Cardiometabolic Risk Syndrome and Weight Management - Dr. Holly
  • Hypertension and Liaison with SETMA 1 - Dr. Aziz, Internal Medicine
  • Cardiovascular Disease and Liaison with SETMA II - Dr. Anwar, Internal Medicine
  • Preventative Health and Liaison with SETMA West - Dr. Satterwhite. Family Practice and Preventive Medicine
  • Participating Staff - all Physicians and CFNPs of SETMA
  • Nutrition - Ms. Satchfield
  • Diabetic Education - Ms. Smith,
  • Mr. Bryan Sims - CFNP - Research (Bryan will start work on his Nurse Practitioner's doctorate in the fall and will write his doctoral dissertation on the diabetes center)
  • Information Technology Support - Jon Owens
  • Administrator - Margaret Ross, MSN
  • Executive Director, SETMA's COO, Rick Bryant, MSN, MBA
  • Oversight - The SETMA Foundation Board of Directors (The Partners of SETMA)

SETMA's Steps Toward Joslin Affiliate Status

In 1999, SETMA began using the NextGen electronic medical record program, the same system used at Joslin. Over the past nine years, we have customized that program to include disease management in diabetes, lipids, hypertension, cardiometabolic risk, CHF, angina pectoris, acute coronary syndrome, weight management, renal disease, asthma, headaches, and diabetic education, as well as tools for the specialties of rheumatology, nursing home management, podiatry, and ophthalmology.

SETMA continually updates these tools and has incorporated extensive information from Diabetes Center of Excellence in the diabetes-disease-management program. In March 2006, in a review of the 2006 Clinical Practice Recommendations by the American Diabetes Association, our Your Life Your Health article addressed the following aspects of SETMA's Diabetes care. In part that article stated:

"The American Diabetes Association has published its Clinical Practice Recommendations 2006. SETMA is currently reviewing the 100-pages of recommendations to make certain that all are incorporated into SETMA's Diabetes Treatment and Prevention program….

"And finally, the Clinical Practice Recommendations for 2006 offer the following strategies for improving diabetes care. SETMA's response to these recommendations is noted following each point.

  • Improving health care professional education regarding the standards of care through formal and informal education programs. SETMA continues to provide point-of-care education and provider evaluation functions to assure that all SETMA providers are continually upgrading their skills in treating diabetes.
  • Delivery of Diabetes Self Management Education (DSME), which has been shown to increase adherence to standard of care. SETMA's ADA Certified Diabetes Education program majors on DSME as a partnership is created between the provider and the patient for the improving of diabetes care.
  • Adoption of practice guidelines, with participation of health care professionals in the process. Guidelines should be readily accessible at the point of service on office computer systems. SETMA's Diabetes Treatment and Prevention Suite of templates make it possible for every provider to perform at a standard of excellence every time a patient is seen with diabetes.
  • Use of checklist that mirror guidelines have been successful at improving adherence to standards of care. These check lists are already part of SETMA's diabetes treatment program.
  • Systems changes, such as provision of automated reminders to health care professionals and patients, reporting of process and outcome date to providers, and especially identification of patients at risk because of failure to achieve target values or a lack of reported values. SETMA audits provider performance and provides the means for providers to evaluate their own performance measuring themselves against national standards of care.
  • Quality improvement programs combining continuous quality improvement of other cycles of analysis and intervention with provider performance date. This is a natural consequence of SETMA's functions which are identified above.
  • Practice changes, such as clustering of dedicated diabetes visits into specific times within a primary care practice schedule and/or visits with multiple health care professionals on a single day and group visits. SETMA's diabetes clinic led by a board-certified endocrinologist employs this method for improving diabetes care.
  • Tracking systems with either an electronic medical record or patient registry have been helpful at increasing adherence to standards of care by prospectively identifying those requiring assessments and/or treatment modifications. They likely could have greater efficacy if they suggested specific therapeutic interventions to be considered for a particular patient at a particular point in time. As already mentioned SETMA's Diabetes Treatment and Prevention program already does this.
  • Dietitians and nurse educators using MNT guidelines have been demonstrated to improve glycemic control. SETMA's ADA approved education program works hand-in-hand with clinicians to improve diabetes care.
  • Availability and involvement of expert consultants, such as endocrinologists and diabetes educators. SETMA does both. SETMA's Metabolism Task Force includes Ophthalmology, Nephrology, Endocrinology, Podiatry, Diabetes Educators and Nutritionist, Lipid Clinic, Diabetes Clinic, Hypertension Clinic, Metabolic Syndrome Clinic, Weight Management, and Exercise Counseling. All work together to provide the highest standard of care and the highest quality of life possible.

SETMA is very proud of both the Foundation and the Diabetes Center of Excellence affiliate agreement. We believe that both will enable SETMA to continue to grow and improve in the medical care which we provide to our friends and neighbors in Southeast Texas and particularly those who have diabetes. Both of these initiatives are a fulfillment of our "private" motto, "We want to do good while we do well," and of our "public" motto, "Healthcare where your health is the only care."

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