National Standards for DSMES
Overview
Accreditation and recognition processes help ensure that services offer quality education and make the services eligible for reimbursement from Medicare, many private health plans, and some state Medicaid agencies.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has authorized the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the Association of Diabetes Care & Education Specialists (ADCES) to determine whether DSMES services meet required standards. Although ADA uses the term “recognition” and ADCES uses the term “accreditation,” the two terms involve the same processes. Both organizations rely on the latest edition of the National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support to evaluate DSMES services.
This section of the toolkit focuses on the 2022 National Standards and provides tools and resources to help services wanting to put the standards into use.
This toolkit provides resources and tools for each of the six 2022 standards. For general information about ADCES and ADA interpretations of the standards, check out the resources below.
ADCES and ADA Interpretations of the 2022 Standards
2022 National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support
Summary list of standards and ADCES’s interpretation
ADA Education Recognition Service Review Criteria and Indicators
The DSMES team will seek leadership support for implementation and sustainability of DSMES services. The sponsor organization will recognize and support quality DSMES services as an integral component of diabetes care. Sponsor organizations will provide guidance and support for DSMES services to facilitate alignment with organizational resources and the needs of the community being served.
Tools to Satisfy Standard 1
ADCES
The DSMES service will evaluate its chosen population to determine, develop, and enhance the resources, design, and delivery methods that align with the population’s needs and preferences.
Tools to Satisfy Standard 2
ADCES
All members of a DSMES team will uphold the National Standards and implement collaborative DSMES services, including evidence-based service design, delivery, evaluation, and continuous quality improvement. At least one team member will be identified as the DSMES quality coordinator and will oversee effective implementation, evaluation, tracking, and reporting of DSMES service outcomes.
Tools to Satisfy Standard 3
ADCES
Community Health Workers’ Role in DSMES and Prediabetes: ADCES Practice Paper
Program Coordinator/Quality Specialist Job Description
ADA
Diabetes Community Care Coordinators (DCCC) Training Tracker
DSMES Service Team Member and Staff Type
DSMES services will use a curriculum to guide evidence-based content and delivery; to ensure consistency of teaching concepts, methods, and strategies within the team; and to serve as a resource for the team. DSMES teams will have knowledge of and be responsive to emerging evidence, advances in education strategies, pharmacotherapeutics, technology-enabled treatment, local and online peer support, psychosocial resources, and delivery strategies relevant to the population they serve.
Tools to Support Standard 4
ADCES
Delivery and Design of DSMES Services
Delivery and Design of DSMES Services: Annual Review Template
Person-centered DSMES is a recurring process over the life span for people with diabetes. Each person’s DSMES plan will be unique and based on the person’s concerns, needs, and priorities collaboratively determined as part of a DSMES assessment. The DSMES team will monitor and communicate the outcomes of the DSMES services to the diabetes care team, the referring physician or other qualified health care professional, or both.
Tools to Support Standard 5
ADCES
DSMES Intervention Tracking Form
ADA
Sample Participant DSMES Assessment Data Collection and Review Policy
DSMES services will have ongoing, continuous quality improvement (CQI) strategies in place that measure the impact of the DSMES services. Systematic evaluation of process and outcome data will be conducted to identify areas for improvement and guide services optimization or redesign.
Tools to Support Standard 6
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) Tool