Overview

This goal of this NIH funded R01 study is to identify risk factors for not being able to follow-up for a new diagnosis of diabetes in the emergency department and improve linkage of these newly diagnosed patients to appropriate outpatient care. Its three aims will be accomplished through 1) a retrospective chart review of emergency department (ED) patients screened for diabetes, 2) a series of prospective qualitative interviews among ED patients with newly diagnosed diabetes who fail to follow-up for outpatient care, and 3) a simple randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy of telehealth bridge visits to connect ED patients with newly diagnosed diabetes to outpatient primary care.

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Emergency patient receiving lab tests with an initial HbA1c test result of ≥ 6.5%
• Residential address in New York City or Long Island
• Primary language is English or Spanish
• Able to provide informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• No prior history of diabetes
• No medical condition that would result in a spurious HbA1c test (e.g., sickle cell, recent blood loss)