Dr. Padma Kaul received an Alberta Diabetes Institute (ADI) Catalyst Grant for the The Uptake of insuLin pump Therapy and Its outcoMes in Alberta (ULTIMA) study, which seeks to better understand the accessibility and long-term outcomes of insulin pump therapy (IPT) use in individuals with Type 1 diabetes mellitus in Alberta. IPT involves a wearable medical device that provides continuous insulin infusion underneath the skin. Compared to multiple daily injections (MDI), IPT is shown to be associated with superior glucose control and an improved patient experience. The ULTIMA study has three primary objectives:
- Examine whether social determinants of health, including socioeconomic status, urban/rural residence, and ethnicity, impact the likelihood of receiving IPT.
- Compare long-term clinical outcomes in a baseline hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), age, sex-matched cohort of people on IPT and on MDI.
- Compare long-term health care resource utilization and costs among those on IPT versus MDI in the aforementioned cohort.
