Aims: To explore the care needs to integrate mHealth technology to promote diabetes self-management engagement from the perspectives of patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) . Design: A phenomenological study using individual, semi-structured, face-to-face-based interviews.
Methods: Purposive sampling of 15 patients with poorly controlled T2DM were recruited from a tertiary hospital in Guangdong, China. Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted to gain in-depth insight into the care needs regarding mHealth perceived by patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were analyzed using the thematic analysis approach.
Results: Four themes and fourteen subthemes emerged from the interview data: (1) informational needs (subthemes: symptoms management, self-care monitoring, complication prevention, and public awareness) , (2) emotional needs (subthemes: psychological flexibility and health coping) , (3) functional needs of mHealth services (subthemes: continuity of care, personalized coaching, family participation) , (4) technical needs related to online applications (subthemes: accessibility, convenience, efficiency, usability, and trustworthy)
Conclusion: This study shed light on the complex and changeable needs of patients with poorly controlled T2DM due to complications and comorbidities. Healthcare providers could incorporate the identified needs in the development of mHealth-based interventions to optimize the health outcomes of patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes. Keywords: poor glycemic control; type 2 diabetes mellitus; health needs; mHealth diabetes services.
Q.Xie: None. L.Cheng: None.
National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.71904214)
