New JAMA Network Open Study Highlights an Effective and Accessible Approach to Enhancing Diabetes Management
BRONX, N.Y., July 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — New research from Montefiore Einstein investigators reveals that an underutilized tool, more commonly employed by endocrinologists, can transform diabetes outcomes in primary care clinics. Despite a proven track record of improving diabetes management, only 10% of people with diabetes who need insulin use a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) – a small wearable device that consistently tracks blood sugar levels.
Today, findings published in JAMA Network Open show that more than 2,000 patients who were prescribed CGMs were 13% less likely to require a hospital stay, 18% less likely to go to the emergency room and overall, experienced significant improvements in their blood sugar management compared to those not on CGMs. This analysis inspired new focus on increasing CGMs in primary care, centering around 18 Montefiore Medical Group (MMG) primary care clinics across Montefiore Medical Center.
“More than 40 million people in the U.S. are living with diabetes, so a creative and collaborative approach is needed to ensure people can access the tools that will help them successfully manage their condition,” said lead author Jovan Milosavljevic, M.D., M.S., endocrinologist and assistant professor of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Einstein. “As an endocrinologist, I have seen firsthand the positive impacts of CGMs, and with people visiting their primary care doctors much more often, we have an incredible opportunity to empower primary care teams and our patients in this setting.”
Moving Beyond a Point in Time
The model that brought CGMs successfully from specialists to the primary care setting reflects efforts from senior author, Shivani Agarwal, M.D., M.P.H., senior director of Community Healthcare Improvement & Strategy at Montefiore Einstein, to redesign systems that shift care to the most appropriate settings, providing population health tools that are evidence-based and outcome-shifting.
“In healthcare, many of the challenges to improving outcomes stem from both having a system that isn’t built to support and optimize our incredible workforce, but also one that does not allow acceleration of paradigm-shifting advancements in medicine to translate quickly to our real-world care,” said Dr. Agarwal. “By initiating this primary care diabetes transformation to increase the use of CGMs in practice, I feel confident that we’ve identified a scalable model in an ideal setting where together, patients and clinicians are evolving how diabetes is managed. Diabetes affects our communities at high levels—we need to bring advancements like this to our patients quickly to improve their quality of life and outcomes.”
One of the challenges with diabetes is that the disease can require 24/7 care due to fluctuation of blood sugar levels, which are impacted by different foods consumed, physical activity, stress and certain medications. Prior to introducing CGMs, clinicians relied on data from finger pricks, which could be painful for patients and only represent a single point in time, while also relying on the patient coming to a clinic visit. CGMs, however, enable doctors and nurses to review data at the visit and remotely over time and see when exactly patients’ sugar levels spike or dip, leading to informed conversations about their diabetes and better access to care.
Supported in part by funding from the American Diabetes Association, Drs. Milosavljevic, Agarwal, and Hodgson are implementing a primary care clinic network-wide initiative where doctors are trained in CGM prescribing and management, staff nurses are being trained to apply and activate devices for patients in clinic, and patients not only are being educated on how to use the device and monitor the data, but are also helping to co-design how CGM patient support is built.
“People live with diabetes all day, every day, but when we were seeing these individuals in our clinics, we would just get one number, representing one moment in time,” said Sybil J. Hodgson, M.D., assistant vice president of Clinical Services, Montefiore Medical Group. “Having CGMs as a new tool at our disposal, we can ask questions about specific times where we saw blood sugar levels spike and dip, like if they had a certain meal then, or how they were feeling at the time. This has led to a deeper understanding of our patients’ lives and is enabling us to make treatment decisions based on a larger amount of actionable data points. This process is not only enabling patients to feel more active in managing their diabetes, it is also transforming how we treat one of the most prominent and persistent diseases seen in primary care.”
About Montefiore Health System
Montefiore Health System is one of New York’s premier academic health systems. It is a recognized leader in providing exceptional quality and personalized, accountable care to approximately three million people in communities across the Bronx, Westchester, and the Hudson Valley. It comprises ten hospitals, including the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, Burke Rehabilitation Hospital, and over two hundred outpatient ambulatory care sites. The advanced clinical and translational research at its medical school, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, directly informs patient care and improves outcomes. From the Montefiore-Einstein Centers of Excellence in cancer, cardiology and vascular care, pediatrics, and transplantation, to its preeminent school-based health program, Montefiore is a fully integrated healthcare delivery system providing coordinated, comprehensive care to patients and their families. For more information, please visit www.montefiore.org. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, or view us on Facebook and YouTube
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SOURCE Montefiore Health System
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