The Use of Language in Diabetes Care and Education.

Language is powerful and can have a strong impact on perceptions as well as behavior. A task force, consisting of representatives from the American Association of Diabetes Educators and the American Diabetes Association, convened to discuss language in diabetes care and education. The literature supports the need for a language movement in diabetes care and education. There are effective ways of communicating about diabetes. This article provides recommendations for language used by health care professionals and others when discussing diabetes through spoken or written words, whether directed to people with diabetes, colleagues, or the general public, as well as research questions related to language and diabetes.

The Use of Language in Diabetes Care and Education.

Language is powerful and can have a strong impact on perceptions as well as behavior. A task force, consisting of representatives from the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE) and the American Diabetes Association (ADA), convened to discuss language in diabetes care and education. This document represents the expert opinion of the task force. The literature supports the need for a language movement in diabetes care and education. There are effective ways of communicating about diabetes. This article provides recommendations for language used by health care professionals and others when discussing diabetes through spoken or written words-whether directed to people with diabetes, colleagues, or the general public, as well as research questions related to language and diabetes.

Understanding preferences for type 2 diabetes mellitus self-management support through a patient-centered approach: a 2-phase mixed-methods study.

BACKGROUND: Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) who participate in diabetes management programs have been shown to have better glycemic control and slower disease progression, although program participation remains low. In the USA, increasing participation in diabetes management support programs may also directly impact provider reimbursement, as payments are increasingly based on patient-centered measures. However, little is known about factors that may enhance patient participation. This study aimed at further understanding what is important in diabetes management support from the patients' perspective and at assessing the utilization of various types of diabetes-management programs. METHODS: A two-phase mixed-methods study was conducted of adult US members of PatientsLikeMe®, an online research network of patients. Phase 1 comprised qualitative interviews with 10 individuals to inform the online survey's contents, aided by literature review. During phase 2, this online survey was completed by 294 participants who reported on their diabetes goals and preferences for T2DM self-management support programs. RESULTS: The majority of the respondents were not participating in any program (65 %), but most had goals of improving diet (77 %), weight loss (71 %), and achieving stable blood glucose levels (71 %). Among those currently participating in programs, clinic, hospital-based, or other health-care professional programs were the most commonly used (51 %). The most preferred type of support was diet/weight-loss support (62 %), while doctors or nurses (61 %) and dietitians (55 %) were the most preferred sources of diabetes support. CONCLUSIONS: The low participation in diabetes self-management programs revealed in this study underscores the need for strategies to improve patient engagement. The results revealed support types and formats that patients with T2DM prefer and need. These findings may help improve patient engagement by guiding the future design of more effective diabetes management support programs.

A community-based program to encourage patients' attention to their own diabetes care: pilot development and evaluation.

PURPOSE: The authors evaluated the ability of a brief educational program to enhance patients' self-care behavior and their familiarity with the meaning and utility of 5 of the major clinical tests in diabetes (A1C, blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein [LDL] cholesterol, microalbumin, and the dilated eye examination). METHODS: Adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes were invited to attend a free, 90-minute, small-group workshop about diabetes care, which included on-site metabolic testing that provided patients with immediate results and personalized feedback to understand those results. In total, 221 individuals with diabetes participated and completed baseline and 3-month follow-up questionnaires. RESULTS: From baseline to 3 months, participants reported significant improvement in following recommendations for meal planning (P < .001), regular exercise (P < .002), and blood glucose monitoring (P < .05) and a significant rise in test awareness for A1C, blood pressure, LDL cholesterol, and microalbumin (in all cases, P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: A brief educational intervention appeared effective in encouraging patients toward better self-management and more regular metabolic testing and to become more aware of their own test results. Future research should aim to replicate and extend these findings in a randomized controlled trial.

Assessing psychosocial distress in diabetes: development of the diabetes distress scale.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the development of the Diabetes Distress Scale (DDS), a new instrument for the assessment of diabetes-related emotional distress, based on four independent patient samples. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In consultation with patients and professionals from multiple disciplines, a preliminary scale of 28 items was developed, based a priori on four distress-related domains: emotional burden subscale, physician-related distress subscale, regimen-related distress subscale, and diabetes-related interpersonal distress. The new instrument was included in a larger battery of questionnaires used in diabetes studies at four diverse sites: waiting room at a primary care clinic (n = 200), waiting room at a diabetes specialty clinic (n = 179), a diabetes management study program (n = 167), and an ongoing diabetes management program (n = 158). RESULTS: Exploratory factor analyses revealed four factors consistent across sites (involving 17 of the 28 items) that matched the critical content domains identified earlier. The correlation between the 28-item and 17-item scales was very high (r = 0.99). The mean correlation between the 17-item total score (DDS) and the four subscales was high (r = 0.82), but the pattern of interscale correlations suggested that the subscales, although not totally independent, tapped into relatively different areas of diabetes-related distress. Internal reliability of the DDS and the four subscales was adequate (alpha > 0.87), and validity coefficients yielded significant linkages with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, meal planning, exercise, and total cholesterol. Insulin users evidenced the highest mean DDS total scores, whereas diet-controlled subjects displayed the lowest scores (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The DDS has a consistent, generalizable factor structure and good internal reliability and validity across four different clinical sites. The new instrument may serve as a valuable measure of diabetes-related emotional distress for use in research and clinical practice.

Integrating medical management with diabetes self-management training: a randomized control trial of the Diabetes Outpatient Intensive Treatment program.

OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the Diabetes Outpatient Intensive Treatment (DOIT) program, a multiday group education and skills training experience combined with daily medical management, followed by case management over 6 months. Using a randomized control design, the study explored how DOIT affected glycemic control and self-care behaviors over a short term. The impact of two additional factors on clinical outcomes were also examined (frequency of case management contacts and whether or not insulin was started during the program). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes in poor glycemic control (A1c >8.5%) were randomly assigned to DOIT or a second condition, entitled EDUPOST, which was standard diabetes care with the addition of quarterly educational mailings. A total of 167 patients (78 EDUPOST, 89 DOIT) completed all baseline measures, including A1c and a questionnaire assessing diabetes-related self-care behaviors. At 6 months, 117 patients (52 EDUPOST, 65 DOIT) returned to complete a follow-up A1c and the identical self-care questionnaire. RESULTS: At follow-up, DOIT evidenced a significantly greater drop in A1c than EDUPOST. DOIT patients also reported significantly more frequent blood glucose monitoring and greater attention to carbohydrate and fat contents (ACFC) of food compared with EDUPOST patients. An increase in ACFC over the 6-month period was associated with improved glycemic control among DOIT patients. Also, the frequency of nurse case manager follow-up contacts was positively linked to better A1c outcomes. The addition of insulin did not appear to be a significant contributor to glycemic change. CONCLUSIONS: DOIT appears to be effective in promoting better diabetes care and positively influencing glycemia and diabetes-related self-care behaviors. However, it demands significant time, commitment, and careful coordination with many health care professionals. The role of the nurse case manager in providing ongoing follow-up contact seems important.

Problems and solutions for alkene polymerisation catalysts incorporating Schiff-bases; migratory insertion and radical mechanisms of catalyst deactivation.

Steric blocking of an intramolecular 1,2-migratory insertion reaction of a zirconium salicylaldiminato complex leads to a long-lived catalyst for ethene polymerisation, but promotes a new radical catalyst decomposition mechanism in certain instances; kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for both pathways have been established.