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Improving Diabetes Outcomes: a Couples Intervention

Phase 1
Completed
Conditions
Diabetes
Interventions
Behavioral: telephone support and behavior change
Other: Diabetes self-management education
Registration Number
NCT00250731
Lead Sponsor
State University of New York - Upstate Medical University
Brief Summary

Research has shown that diabetes affects both the patient and family, and that support from family and partners helps diabetes patients manage their illness better. However, diabetes programs rarely involve the partner. This is a study to develop and test an intervention that helps partners and patients who have type 2 diabetes better support each other. The intervention will be delivered over the telephone to reach more people. Our hypothesis is that an intervention that targets the couple has a greater effect on health and well-being of patients than one that targets the individual patient alone.

Detailed Description

Research has shown that diabetes affects both the patient and family, and that support from family and partners helps diabetes patients manage their illness better. However, diabetes programs rarely involve the partner. This is a pilot proposal to develop and test an intervention that aims to both enlist the support of partners of diabetes patients, and enhance and improve the quality of that support. We believe that the intervention will help the relationship and also will have a positive impact on medical (e.g.,blood sugar control), behavioral (e.g., increased exercise, better diet) and emotional (e.g., depression) outcomes. The intervention will be implemented by telephone, in order to enhance the project's ability to reach a broader sample of patients.Forty-five couples will be recruited in which one partner has type 2 diabetes. After initial testing and basic diabetes education, they will be assigned to one of three comparison groups. For those in the intervention groups they will participate in 11 telephone contacts with a diabetes educator and a counselor and will receive education about diabetes, behavior change, emotional issues/couples communication, and problem solving techniques. A manual will include readings, structured homework assignments, and self-monitoring logs. They will be re-tested 2 weeks and 3 months after the intervention.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
45
Inclusion Criteria
  • greater than 21 years of age.
  • diagnosed with type 2 diabetes for at least 1 year.
  • have no severe complications (on dialysis, blindness, amputations, history of stroke)
  • able to speak, read and hear English.
  • married or cohabiting for > 1 year.
  • have a telephone.
Exclusion Criteria
  • have a diagnosed psychiatric disorder.
  • refuse audiotaping or other study procedures.

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
FACTORIAL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
1telephone support and behavior changeTelephone support and behavior change for couples
2telephone support and behavior changeTelephone support and behavior change for individuals
3Diabetes self-management educationLimited diabetes self-management education
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
blood pressure2 and 14 weeks post
blood glucose control (hemoglobin A1c)2 and 14 weeks post
diabetes regimen adherenceat 2 and 14 weeks post
Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
lipidsat 2 and 14 weeks post intervention
weight/BMIat 2 and 14 weeks post intervention
food habitsat 2 and 14 weeks post intervention
activity habitsat 2 and 14 weeks post intervention
health-related quality of lifeat 2 and 14 weeks post
relationship qualityat 2 and 14 weeks post intervention
diabetes self-efficacyat 2 and 14 weeks post intervention

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

State University of New York Upstate Medical University

🇺🇸

Syracuse, New York, United States

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