Blue Review
A Provider Publication
print page

November 2022

Diabetes Screening for People Using Antipsychotic Medications

The NCQA quality measure Diabetes Screening for People With Schizophrenia or Bipolar Disorder Who Are Using Antipsychotic Medications (SSD) tracks the number of people 18 to 64 years old who had an annual diabetes screening. We track SSD and other Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) measures to help assess and improve our members’ care.

Tips to Help Close Gaps in Care

  • Order an annual diabetes screening test, such as a glucose or HgbA1c test, for our members with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder who are using antipsychotic medications.
  • Build care gap alerts for screening tests in your electronic medical records. Reach out to our members who cancel appointments and help them reschedule as soon as possible.
  • Encourage shared decision-making by educating our members and caregivers about:
    • Increased risk of diabetes with antipsychotics
    • Importance of screening for diabetes
    • Diabetes symptoms
  • We’ve created resources for members about diabetes that may help.
  • Coordinate care between behavioral health and primary care physicians (PCPs) by requesting test results, communicating about test results, or scheduling an appointment for testing.
  • For members who don’t have regular contact with their PCP, behavioral health practitioners may order diabetes screening tests and communicate the results to the PCP.