UCSF was recently selected from among 140 institutions nationwide to receive a "Partnership for Quality Education" (PQE) grant by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The goal of the program is to enhance outpatient care for diabetics. UCSF is one of only 9 centers in the country to receive this presitigous award.

The UCSF Partnership for Quality Education Diabetes Management Program (PQEDMP) will allow the Diabetes Center to improve its outpatient services for the management of diabetes. Several elements of the program will be integrated, including decision support, clinical information systems, delivery systems, patient-self management support, family counselling and education and more. In addition, new training initiatives will target medical residents and interns, nurses and pharmacy students to help them develop skills and strategies important to the effective care of patients with diabetes.

Utilizing modern quality improvement strategies, this program allows UCSF to make system changes to our management of chronic diseases such as diabetes, while at the same time teaching our training physicians, nurses and pharmacists the important and special aspects of caring for diabetes patients and the principles of quality improvement and interdisciplinary care.

Serving as principal investigators of the program are Robert Baron, MD, MS, Department of Medicine; Susan Janson, RN-NP, DNSc, School of Nursing, and Molly Cooke, MD, Department of Medicine. Other project faculty include Josh Adler, MD, Kathryn Julian, MD, Robert Rushakoff, MD, Michael Potter, MD, Lisa Kroon, PharmD, Andrew Leeds, PharmD, and Kelly Sheehan, RN-NP.

Further information on the initiative can be accessed through the PQE's website: http://www.pqe.org/programs-takecare.html.