Saudi family physician’s clinical inertia of type 2 diabetes management

A BSTRACT Background: The primary aim in effectively managing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is to delay or prevent persistent diabetes complications through tailored individual targets, ensuring controlled glycemic levels. While family physicians play a crucial role in managing T2DM; the phenomenon of clinical inertia has emerged as a barrier to achieving optimal patient outcomes. Objective: To assess the prevalence of clinical inertia in the management of T2DM among Saudi family physicians working at primary care centers. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among family physicians working at primary care centers in Al Taif city, kingdom of Saudi Arabia utilizing a self-administered questionnaire to collect the data. Results: The study included 264 family physicians. About 31.6% of them were not aware of the term “clinical inertia,” while 78.3% were comfortable recommending injectable therapies. Moreover, majority of them (95.4%) were referring to guidelines and treatment algorithms to manage patients with T2DM . The most frequently barriers to treatment intensification were lack of support for example, nursing staff, diabetes educators (48.7%), concern over patient`s adherence (47.6%), and lack of information or understanding of new treatment options and potential benefits (45.9%). Almost half of physicians (58.4%) believed that it will be appropriate to not intensify treatments for patients despite not meeting their goals when being close to glycosylated hemoglobin ( HbA1c %) target. Conclusion: A considerable proportion of family physicians in Saudi Arabia were not aware of the term “clinical inertia.” Therefore, to address clinical inertia in managing diabetes, family physicians in Saudi Arabia should receive training to enhance their understanding of clinical inertia and its impact on patient outcomes.