An Opportunity for Improvement: Evaluation of Diabetes Technology Education Among Adult Endocrinology Training Programs.

backgroundDespite increases in continuous glucose monitor (CGM) and insulin pump use in adults with diabetes, there is room for expansion. Technology adoption may be influenced by the training environment and fellowship education. However, little is known about adult endocrinology trainee comfort with, understanding of, or methods by which trainees receive education about diabetes technology.

methodsMixed methods, sequential explanatory evaluation using survey and semi-structured interviews of endocrinology trainees and fellowship leadership in Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited adult endocrinology fellowship programs to assess trainee and leadership comfort with, perceived knowledge of, and current methods for diabetes technology education.

resultsSeventy-seven respondents completed the survey. The majority of training programs have curricula for training on insulin pumps (74%) and CGM (75.3%); 52% of fellows felt curricula are adequate. First- and second-year fellows were more comfortable with CGM than insulin pump use. Only half of third-year fellows felt comfortable with starting insulin pump therapy or recommending insulin dose adjustments based on CGM rate of change arrows. Qualitative interviews identified the importance of both direct instruction and experiential learning in diabetes technology education.

conclusionsAlmost half of trainees feel that curricula for learning to use and manage insulin pumps and CGM are inadequate and feel uncomfortable with critical aspects of technology use, demonstrating the need for increased attention to trainee education in the use of diabetes technology. Based on a better understanding of current and preferred methods for instruction, this study provides direction for future development of initiatives to improve fellow education in this field.