Innovative Diabetes Self-Management Programs Identified for Urban Patients Who Speak Various Languages

Research supported by AHRQ identified innovative diabetes self-management programs for patients who speak various languages. The study and abstract, “Diabetes Health Information Technology Innovation to Improve Quality of Life for Health Plan Members in Urban Safety Net,” appeared in the April–June issue of Journal of Ambulatory Care Management. Through an automated telephone system, the program provided 27 weeks of support in English, Spanish and Cantonese. Participants showed improvements in diabetes self-care behaviors, suggesting that automated telephone support can play an important role in improving patient-centered diabetes care.

2014 Apr-Jun;37(2):127-37. doi: 10.1097/JAC.0000000000000019.

Diabetes health information technology innovation to improve quality of life for health plan members in urban safety net.

Ratanawongsa N1, Handley MA, Sarkar U, Quan J, Pfeifer K, Soria C, Schillinger D.

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Abstract

Safety net systems need innovative diabetes self-management programs for linguistically diverse patients. A low-income government-sponsored managed care plan implemented a 27-week automated telephone self-management support/health coaching intervention for English-, Spanish-, and Cantonese-speaking members from 4 publicly funded clinics in a practice-based research network. Compared to waitlist, immediate intervention participants had greater 6-month improvements in overall diabetes self-care behaviors (standardized effect size [ES] = 0.29, P < .01) and 12-Item Short Form Health Survey physical scores (ES = 0.25, P = .03); changes in patient-centered processes of care and cardiometabolic outcomes did not differ. Automated telephone self-management is a strategy for improving patient-reported self-management and may also improve some outcomes.