Diabetes group visits offer new way for patients to manage disease

After Renee Schwertfeger, FNP-BC, NP joined the WVU Medicine Department of Endocrinology 15 years ago, she began to see an opportunity for a new approach to how patients with diabetes manage their disease.

“Within the last five years, I’ve been trying to figure out something a little bit different for patient care that would be supportive and enjoyable for them, and so we developed the group visits,” said Schwertfeger. “Patients with diabetes come together in a group setting for a shared medical visit with other diabetic patients and providers.”

Schwertfeger wanted to provide a space where patients with diabetes can receive care and support, while talking with other patients experiencing the same thing.

“I can talk a lot about how to manage diabetes, but unless you are afflicted with diabetes, it is sometimes difficult to fully understand the impact it has on quality of life,” Schwertfeger said. “We have nurse practitioners, physicians, pharmacists and diabetes educators involved, so it brings us all together.”

Starting just before the COVID-19 pandemic, Schwertfeger was coordinating and managing these once-a-month visits herself, but she now has the support of four other endocrinologists to help facilitate the visits.

In order for patients with diabetes to join the group visits, they are first referred by their provider and are scheduled for an initial meeting with Schwertfeger before entering the group setting.

“Our schedulers who know about these visits will initially put them in a one-on-one phone call for 30 minutes so that we establish the endocrine relationship,” Schwertfeger said. “The next month, they will be enrolled into the group setting.”

If a patient is already seen in the endocrinology department at WVU Medicine, they may be directly enrolled into the group visit.

Once placed into the group setting, patients meet on the fourth Thursday of each month at 12:30 p.m. at the Suncrest Town Center WVU Medicine conference room. Patients will still be seen individually by their regular providers in endocrinology periodically throughout the year in addition to the group visits. Patients can expect the visits to act as a regular clinical appointment as well as a space for support and education.

“I usually start with an informative introduction and then we do an informal,15-to-20-minute talk about anything diabetes related,” said Schwertfeger. “Once that’s done, we go around the room and talk to each patient about his or her care, what we need to change, and at the same time, our educators are finding out what needs to be refilled, what labs need to be ordered and setting up follow-ups.”

While the now in-person group visits are still in the beginning stages, patients have responded positively to the initial meetings and feel that they have learned more about diabetes.

“They find it enjoyable; they’ve learned little things and are able to learn from others. They feel like they’re supported and it’s reassuring for them that they’re not alone in this,” Schwertfeger said. “As every conversation goes on, we’re constantly educating.”

As the group visits continue to grow, Schwertfeger hopes that patients attending feel supported and learn new ways to manage their disease.

“I want them to feel that there are so many ways to attack diabetes and I want them to feel like this is a way to have support and still get good care,” said Schwertfeger. “It’s just a new way to manage patients, a new way to help them get to their goals.”

Anyone interested in joining the diabetes group visits should consult with their WVU Medicine endocrinology provider or if they are not yet established in the WVU Medicine endocrinology clinic, they can be referred for a diabetes group visit.

Photo caption: from left to right, Sheree Bryan, RN, Certified Diabetes Educator; Renee Schwertfeger, NP, Certified Diabetes Educator; Ashley Liller, RN, Certified Diabetes Educator