Pilot test of an educational intervention to improve self-management of diabetes in persons living with HIV

• Main Authors: Julie Zuñiga, Alexandra A. García, Luisa Silva, Jung-Min Park, Yuri Barrera
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2019-09-01
• Series: Pilot and Feasibility Studies
• Subjects: HIV; Type 2 diabetes; Self-management; Chronic disease management; Health behavior; Nurse
• Online Access: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40814-019-0495-5

Abstract People living with a diagnosis of HIV (PLWH) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) can experience a synergistic negative impact on their vascular and immune systems if their conditions are poorly controlled. The purpose of this study was to adapt a community-based diabetes self-management intervention for people living with HIV and test the feasibility of administering the intervention with PLWH+T2DM who are low-income, predominantly minority, vulnerable population. The intervention was 12 weeks long with 6 h of educational instruction followed by 6 weekly support telephone calls to reinforce training and problem solve. The study used a one-group pretest–posttest design. Participants were a convenience sample of 25 adults diagnosed with HIV + T2DM. Diabetes knowledge, HIV knowledge, and self-management skills were measured. Analyses comprised descriptive statistics and correlations. Participants completed an average of 2.7 of 6 h of instruction and an average of 3 of 6 possible telephone calls. There was a 34% increase in diabetes self-management skills from pretest to posttest, but there were no changes in knowledge about HIV or diabetes. Based on this pilot study, next steps will include a multi-modal educational intervention, with in-person, at-home, and teleconference components. Blood sample collection procedure will be coordinated with study visits to decrease participants’ burden, and the updated diabetes knowledge instrument with a higher reported internal consistency will be used.