Interventions
diabetes
DIABETES
Patients were randomized to one of the following 4 intervention groups: phone call, mail, mail plus phone call, and usual care. Patients assigned to the phone call intervention were contacted by an administrative staff who informed them that they were calling from the family practice and asked them whether they have had their diabetes eye screening exam completed in the recent year. Patients who indicated that they were not screened and did not have a preexisting scheduled appointment were offered to make a booking for the teleophthalmology program and be screened at the family practice. Patients who were assigned to the mailed letter intervention received a letter in the mail from the practice stating that they were due for DR screening, and the letter provided them with a list of options for screening, such as receiving a referral for ophthalmology from their family doctor, going to an optometrist’s office, or visiting the teleophthalmology program at their clinic. The letter also included a brochure about the teleophthalmology program. Patients in the letter plus phone call group were sent out the letter and then were contacted by phone a week later. The usual care group was called a month after the trial was initiated, and patients were asked whether they had been screened to obtain a baseline screening rate for them. Usual care at this practice consisted of primary care providers asking patients during a routine visit whether they had been screened for DR within the last year and providing a referral to an optometrist, an ophthalmologist, or the local teleophthalmology program for screening. When referral was made, patients would receive a call with the date of their appointment from the primary care practice.