A program utilizing community pharmacists to improve diabetes education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this program was to demonstrate that retail community pharmacists could successfully recruit, engage and counsel people with diabetes by serving as a trusted source of diabetes information. We evaluated the outcomes of this clinical program in preparation for a wider roll out. METHODS: Joslin Diabetes Center collaborated with Nahdi Medical Company, a large retail pharmacy chain in Saudi Arabia, to offer a 'Let's Talk About Diabetes' (LTAD) program. LTAD consists of four 1: 1 counselling sessions, approximately 20 min each, scheduled over a 2-4 month period with a focus on medications, lab results, glucose monitoring and doctor visits. Twenty-five pharmacists completed diabetes education certification and intensive on-site training to deliver the LTAD program. RESULTS: The 25 program pharmacists in 11 locations enrolled 2639 individual customers into the program. Of these, 1582 participated in at least one session and 1137 (71.9%) participated in at least one LTAD session and completed follow-up surveys. There were 380 customers with paired HbA1C results which demonstrated a reduction from 8.50% (69 mmol/mol) to 7.32% (56 mmol/mol) (P < 0.001). There were improvements in diabetes awareness, attitudes towards diabetes and medication adherence. CONCLUSION: The evaluation of this community program suggests that a pharmacy-led diabetes education program is feasible in Saudi Arabia.