Culturally Tailored DSME For Adult Hispanics With Type Two Diabetes

Abstract

Purpose: This quality improvement (QI) project aimed to educate primary care providers on the benefits of culturally tailored diabetes self-management education (DSME) and increase provider willingness to deliver culturally tailored DSME to their adult Hispanic patients with diabetes. Background: In the United States (U.S.), the prevalence of diabetes is growing, with an estimated 37 million individuals reporting a current diagnosis of diabetes. Among adult Hispanics, the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is approximately 70% higher than for non-Hispanic Whites. DSME is an evidence-based practice educating patients with diabetes on disease management. Research indicates that traditional DSME is less beneficial among Hispanics due to language, access, literacy, and cultural barriers. Culturally tailored DSME is an evidence-based practice addressing the abovementioned barriers to improve patient outcomes. Methods: An educational PowerPoint presentation regarding the benefits of culturally tailored DSME was provided to a single group of healthcare providers employed at a private clinic in Spokane, Washington. The participants in the QI project completed pretest and posttest surveys to assess the effectiveness of the educational intervention. Additional resources in Spanish were provided for newly diagnosed Hispanic patients with T2DM. Results: Nine healthcare professionals participated in the educational presentation. 100% (N = 9) of the participants completed the pre-/post-test surveys. The key findings included positive results regarding the project purpose, with 89% (n = 8) of the participants reporting willingness to deliver culturally tailored DSME to their Hispanic patients with diabetes. After viewing the presentation, 78% (n = 7) reported adequate resources for Hispanic patients with diabetes. A slight increase in knowledge (1%) was noted in the surveys. Conclusions: The presentation improved knowledge of cultural concepts and the benefits of culturally tailored DSME. However, the knowledge increase was lower than was expected. The participants expressed an increased willingness to implement culturally tailored DSME. Recommendations for the future include implementing the presentation clinic-wide to remaining staff members. This project coordinator (PC) recommends offering a brief culturally tailored DSME to all newly diagnosed adult Hispanic patients in this primary care clinic utilizing the provided resources from the QI project.