Physician-Targeted Education for Management of Chinese T2DM Patients Receiving Basal Insulin—BEYOND II Study Results

BEYOND II was a multicenter, single-arm, observational study in which physicians received education based on T2DM treatment guidelines and effective patient education, reinforced by self-audit and peer-to-peer review over a 6-month period. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of study centers meeting individual improvement goals set by the Study Committee, based on HbA1c <7.0%. Two cohorts of ∼100 patients (baseline and post-education) with T2DM who had received basal-insulin (BI)-based treatment for ≥3 months were enrolled at each center. Of 71 centers that completed the study, 35 (49.3%) achieved improvement targets. Patients in the post-education cohort had improved glycemic control vs. the baseline cohort (Table). At centers meeting improvement targets, a higher proportion of physicians (n=356) self-rated as ’confident in most cases’ about insulin initiation (89.9% vs. 78.9%), titration (87.4% vs. 80.9%), and hypoglycemia management (89.0% vs. 80.6%) post education vs. baseline, but there was no change at centers not meeting improvement targets. In a multivariate regression, completion of education (yes vs. no) had the strongest positive association with achievement of HbA1c <7% (OR=1.55, p<0.001). Physician-targeted education was effective at around 50% of study centers for improving glycemic control in patients with T2DM receiving BI-based treatment.