Diabetes Self-Management Models to Reduce Health Disparities

Study Summary

To evaluate the effectiveness of two different diabetes self-management approaches (Personal Digital Assistant-based intervention \& Chronic Disease Self-Management Program) to reduce health disparities in minority, rural residents, and other underserved populations with type 2 diabetes in Central Texas. We hypothesise that: 1) Racial/ethnic minority patients with T2DM will be found to experience disparities in diabetes self-management treatment protocols and clinical outcomes, which persist even when controlling for age, gender, obesity, and insurance status; 2) Patients with T2DM who reside in more rural areas will be found to experience disparities in diabetes self-management treatment protocols and clinical outcomes as compared to more urban counterparts, controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, obesity, and insurance status; 3) The introduction of CSDMP and HIT protocols will improve diabetes-related self management behaviors, reduce HBA1c values, and increase quality of life in persons with T2DM as compared to controls. A combined intervention approach will result in the greatest reductions; 4) Health improvements following the introduction of CDSMP, HIT or CDSMP/HIT protocols in persons with T2DM compared to controls will be more marked in racial/ethnic minority patients and those patients residing in rural areas; 5) The introduction of self-management interventions will be cost-effective in reducing HbA1c values over time, and associated health care utilization including overall reduction in ER and acute care hospital admissions; 6) Although there is little prior research in this area to guide specific hypotheses, we hypothesize that, overall, there will be no significant cost-effective differential in CDSMP as compared to HIT approaches, although the cost-effective ratio may be stronger in particular subpopulations. The combined approach will have higher costs, but is also anticipated to have a higher cost-benefit ratio for minority populations; 7) The

Primary Outcome

Measures of HbA1c were collected from electronic health records dating back six months prior to orientation to the last day of study participation (45 days after the 12-month follow-up period). If a participant did not have any HbA1c value within the electronic health record for any particular follow-up visit, a lab test was scheduled to obtain a measure. Of the HbA1c collected six months prior to orientation, the value measured closest to the orientation date was considered as the baseline HbA1

Interventions

• BEHAVIORAL PDA
• BEHAVIORAL CDSMP
• BEHAVIORAL PDA/CDSMP