Purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe components of organizational support for self-management in primary care and provide illustrations of each of these components from the Diabetes Initiative's Advancing Diabetes Self Management (ADSM) projects.
Methods: Elements of organizational resources and supports for diabetes self-management in primary care were developed from the experience of the ADSM projects and in collaboration with Diabetes Initiative staff and experts.
Results: Eight elements of organizational support for self-management were identified: (1) the establishment of patient care teams, (2) continuity of care, (3) coordination of referrals, (4) documentation of self-management support, (5) ongoing quality improvement, (6) patient input, (7) staff training and education, and (8) integration of self-management into primary care.
Conclusion: Establishing a comprehensive system of care for people with diabetes is enabled by an infrastructure of organizational resources and supports for self-management in primary care settings. These components of organizational support provide guidance for integrating diabetes self-management services into primary care settings.