Elevate Your Health Colorado: Your Health Information Resource

When people have diabetes, it’s not just their blood sugar they need to monitor. They also need to watch their blood pressure and cholesterol. Diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol are all major risk factors for heart disease and stroke.

“People with diabetes are two to four times more likely to have heart disease or a stroke compared to those who do not have diabetes,” says Ann Wells, MD, a board-certified internist and physician lead for diabetes and heart failure with Kaiser Permanente Colorado. “They also are more likely to have them at an earlier age.”

To help underscore this concern, studies show that at least 65 percent of all people with diabetes die from some form of heart disease or a stroke – and not from diabetes alone.

Knowledge empowers
These are scary statistics. But doctors want people with diabetes to become more knowledgeable about these related risks. High blood pressure and cholesterol have no noticeable symptoms, which means they can easily go undetected and untreated. Over time, they can seriously damage the heart and blood vessels.

“When patients understand the seriousness of these risks, they are much more likely to take an active role in managing them,” Dr. Wells says.

However, managing blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol can be a huge undertaking. Often each condition has its own medications, and for some, the medications can cause bothersome side effects or be costly. “To help our patients manage it all, we offer them plenty of support,” Dr. Wells says.

Outreach helps
Kaiser Permanente Colorado uses its sophisticated electronic medical record system and computerized registries to identify patients with diabetes and help manage their care. It also has a quality support team of nurse specialists and diabetes care coordinators who carefully review patients’ charts, paying careful attention to their blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol numbers.

If these conditions are not well controlled, Kaiser Permanente Colorado reaches out to patients to remind them how important it is to manage their diabetes and its related risks. The goal of this outreach is to find patients and get them in for necessary screenings, education, and support before complications arise. To help patients stay on track, the entire team works together. This includes primary care physicians, primary care nurses, the endocrinology department, quality support team nurses, and diabetes care coordinators.

Kaiser Permanente also offers its patients free blood pressure follow up and cholesterol screenings. In addition, its electronic medical records enable patients to refill prescriptions, communicate with their primary care provider or diabetes care coordinator, and monitor their blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels online.

“Thanks to our proactive approach and integrated record system, 75 percent of Kaiser Permanente Colorado patients with diabetes adhere to all recommended therapies, which is an awesome rate,” Dr. Wells says. “This means they are far less likely to die of heart disease.”

Excellence in care
Kaiser Permanente participates in several independent reports on quality of care and service. The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and the American Diabetes Association (ADA) list more than 70 Kaiser Permanente Colorado physicians who have been honored by the Diabetes Physician Recognition Program for excellence in diabetes care.

“While managing diabetes and heart disease risks is very important, our ultimate goal is to identify patients earlier – before they even get diabetes. If we can reach them earlier and help them make the recommended lifestyle changes, we can help them avoid diabetes altogether,” Dr. Wells says. Prevention really is the best medicine.

To learn more about managing diabetes and heart disease risks, visit KaiserPermanente.org.

Dr. Wells received her medical degree from the University of Virginia. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the David Grant Medical Center, Travis Air Force Base, California, and is board certified in internal medicine.