Diabetes disease management: Past, present, and future

Diabetes is a condition that easily lends itself to a disease management ap proach. It is characterized by easily measurable and quantifiable outcomes and process measures. When implemented, diabetes disease management program s can significantly improve outcomes, whether compared with the American Di abetes Association standards [1] or when assessed based on economic models [2, 3]. Despite this, on a population level, the data for patients with dia betes shows that targets are rarely reached [4-6]. This means that these pr ograms are not uniformly available and/or they are implemented poorly. This review covers the history of diabetes disease management, its current appl ication, and goals for the future.