Home sessions made blood sugar checks feel a bit more automatic, but not pills
Who it’s about: Young adults, People with a health condition
- Mixed
Home talks on goals, habits and routines made blood sugar checks feel a bit more automatic, but not pills.
- Action: Set a specific goaltested
- Action: Take your medicationused
- Rule: With a coach or therapistused
Small randomised trial of 81 young adults with poorly controlled diabetes · vs a home visit, leaflets and phone calls · they rated themselves
The study
Who took part
81 young adults aged 18 to 30 in Los Angeles County, USA, with low incomes. All had type 1 or type 2 diabetes that was poorly controlled. They were about 23 on average, most were women, and most were Hispanic or Latino.
What they did
For 6 months, one group met a therapist one-to-one every two weeks, at home or nearby. They had about 9 sessions on average. The sessions covered goals, healthy habits and daily routines, and talking through what people wanted to change. The other group got one home visit with the usual diabetes leaflets and 11 phone calls that followed a script.
What happened
Checking blood sugar felt more automatic in the therapy group at 6 months, but only just enough to count as a difference. Taking medicine did not feel more automatic. The number of days people checked blood sugar or took medicine did not differ. Some numbers in the paper don't match each other.
Source
Occupational Therapy Intervention Improves Glycemic Control and Quality of Life Among Young Adults With Diabetes: the Resilient, Empowered, Active Living with Diabetes (REAL Diabetes) Randomized Controlled Trial (2018)
DOI: 10.2337/dc17-1634 (opens in a new tab)
