National Diabetes Prevention Program Expands to Pharmacies

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Foundation announced a partnership with Tabula Rasa HealthCare (TRHC) that will scale the National Diabetes Prevention Program to pharmacies across the United States.

TRHC, a subsidiary company of SinfoniaRx, is the latest addition to APhA’s partnership with The Kroger Co. in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) cooperative agreement.

"Through the support of our partners, we will use a novel approach to reach more people, create better engagement, and improve outcomes,” Colleen Lindholz, president of Kroger Pharmacy and The Little Clinic said in an earlier press release.

An estimated 84.1 million adults in the United States have prediabetes. If untreated, this can develop into type 2 diabetes and contribute to a myriad of negative health outcomes including heart attack and stroke. But the onset of type 2 diabetes can be delayed and even prevented with healthy lifestyle changes such as improved diet and exercise.

"More than one out of every three American adults has prediabetes and most are largely unaware. We believe that Kroger is uniquely positioned to connect with people in our communities and offer a personalized solution proven to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes," Lindholz continued.

The new partnership aims to leverage pharmacies to grow the CDC’s National Diabetes Prevention program. Through the Project IMPACT: Diabetes Prevention, evidence-based lifestyle change strategies will help at-risk individuals reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Technology solutions will bolster pharmacies’ capacities to aid in prevention efforts. The innovative model will leverage face-to-face interactions and telehealth solutions to broaden the outreach of the program to include underserved communities.  

"A purposeful goal of this partnership is to address the unique needs and preferences of underserved populations to prevent type 2 diabetes. We intend for Project IMPACT: Diabetes Prevention to increase access designed to produce a substantial and positive impact on patient engagement and outcomes," said Sandra Leal, PharmD, MPH, SinFoniaRX CEO in an earlier press release.

Professionals who traditionally were not involved in prevention strategies will gain skills to help at-risk patients prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes, expanding the reach of the Diabetes Prevention Program. Pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, dieticians, and other healthcare professionals in pharmacy practices will all be trained to deliver the CDC’s lifestyle change program to at-risk patients.

"Tabula Rasa HealthCare’s precision medication software applications are designed to identify high-risk individuals, and our clinical pharmacists and technicians work with clients to help ensure proper dosing guidelines,” explained Calvin H. Knowlton, PhD, CEO of TRHC. “We look forward to contributing our expertise to diabetes prevention."

Pharmacy professionals can customize the program to fit the needs of each at-risk individual. Improved training, digital technology, and community knowledge allow these providers to tailor the program to fit each individual’s needs, ultimately improving their chances of delaying or preventing the development of type 2 diabetes.

"Working with our partners, we are excited about delivering an innovative model of diabetes prevention care, tailored to meet the needs of the participants and optimize healthcare system workflow, that we believe will help people lead healthier lives,” stated Benjamin Bluml, RPh senior vice president of research and innovation of the APhA Foundation.

"We are honored and privileged to collaborate with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, The Kroger Co., and TRHC to continue expanding infrastructure within highly accessible pharmacy practice environments to deliver evidence-based diabetes prevention lifestyle change programs to the people who need it the most," Bluml concluded.