In Brief: Beacon Program Helps Diabetics; Children\'s Mercy Receives NIH Grant

Michigan Beacon Community Makes Gains In Diabetes Control

The Beacon Community in Southeast Michigan has reported that a navigation program involving patients with Type 2 adult onset diabetes has helped them get the disease under better control.

The 90-day program involved the use of patient health navigators, who assisted the patients with improving their diet, getting more exercise and other relevant lifestyle changes. Referrals are made by the 46 providers participating in the Southeast Michigan Beacon program, which includes private medical practices and federally qualified health centers.

Those involved in the program saw improved medication adherence, monitoring of blood sugar, and making lifestyle changes to improve their overall health.

More than 2,200 patients have been referred to navigators since the program was launched in July 2011, and about half actively engaged with the navigators. Exact outcome data was not available.

"Our practice has found a great deal of value in the (navigator) program," said Steven Hadesman, M.D. of Medical Pavilion II Internal Medicine in Detroit. "We see patient health navigators as an extension of our care team that can engage patients after they have left our office.”

The Southeast Michigan Beacon is one of 17 “beacon communities” established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and administered by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.

Childrens' Mercy Hospital Gets $5.9 Million NIH Grant

Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City has received a $5.86 million grant from the National Institutes for Health and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to determine the feasibility and benefits of conducting rapid whole genome analyses of severely ill newborns who might be suffering from a genetic abnormality.

The money will be used to fund studies to determine how to speed up the process of such testing, known as STAT-seq, as well as lowering the cost of such tests, along with assessing its benefits and potential harm.

Hospital officials say up to 30 percent of newborns in Children's Mercy's intensive care unit may be suffering from genetic abnormalities, but a rapid sequencing test currently costs tens of thousands of dollars to perform and may not provide a clear diagnosis.

“More than 20% of infant deaths are caused by congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities caused by genetic illnesses,” said Howard Kilbride, M.D., director of Children's Mercy's division of neonatology. “Families want answers, and they want them quickly. This technology – and this grant, in particular – will help make that happen.”