DSME/T Program Accreditation

Executive Summary

AADE's Diabetes Education Accreditation Program

Diabetes education is a critical part of patients’ success with diabetes. However, programs that teach patients about behavior change strategies and self-management techniques have traditionally been limited to hospital-based or affiliated settings.

Because of the rising number of people with diabetes in the United States and the increased demands they place on the healthcare system, diabetes education programs are beginning to emerge in a variety of settings—from community centers, to local pharmacies, to physician offices. By expanding the delivery options for diabetes education, these new or developing settings are making education more accessible to more patients.

Acknowledging and encouraging the continuation of this trend, AADE has become a program accreditation organization, which allows us to promote and recognize quality patient care in these settings.

Of the nearly 24 million Americans who have diabetes, approximately 85 percent report that they turn to their primary care provider for their diabetes care. This means that an increasing number of physicians have begun or will begin offering diabetes education in their practices or contracting with local diabetes educators. 

By becoming an accrediting body for diabetes education, AADE is striving to provide caregivers such as physician offices, clinics, pharmacies and community centers with a way to ensure that they are offering their patients comprehensive, effective diabetes self-management education and to achieve recognition for their efforts. Additionally, AADE is seeking to facilitate new practice settings and opportunities for diabetes educators.

Why AADE accreditation?

As an AADE-accredited program, settings that offer diabetes education will have access to the structure and tools needed to enhance their offerings and increase recognition for their program.

For settings that are implementing a diabetes education program, AADE accreditation provides guidance for meeting practice standards, such as HEDIS quality measures, and offers tools that can improve patient outcomes and meet the needs of the growing diabetes population and assist practitioners such as diabetes educators, physicians and pharmacists with their performance improvement efforts

AADE accreditation is flexible, as it enables programs to easily accredit multiple sites with one application and an all-inclusive fee. For example, several physician offices could decide to share the services of one diabetes education team -- each office would have the opportunity to be accredited as a diabetes education provider with a single application.

AADE-accredited programs have access to:

  • An AADE diabetes self-management education curriculum that facilitates behavior change leading to improved clinical outcomes (available for purchase Spring 2009). AADE accreditation provides diabetes education programs with a written curriculum specifically tailored to their practice setting. The curriculum is based on the AADE7™ Self-Care Behaviors framework and current evidence and practice guidelines. It promotes behavior change strategies as critical to patients’ success with diabetes, and it supplies criteria for evaluating patient outcomes.
  • Tracking tools for patients’ self-management goals. AADE accreditation offers free tools that allow the diabetes education program to track and report their patients’ behavior change and clinical indicators. The AADE7 System tools can easily interface with existing disease management software and electronic health record systems or can be used independently.

In short, AADE accreditation informs patients, prospective patients, and payers that the practice offers quality, comprehensive diabetes education and care.

Click here for additional information and to view the program accreditation application.

Since 1973, the American Association of Diabetes Educators has been committed to ensuring diabetes patients have access to DSME/T, which provides knowledge and skill training, helps patients identify barriers, and facilitates problem-solving and coping skills to achieve effective self-care behavior and behavior change.

Interested in becoming a member? Join AADE