Telephone Counseling Effective In Maintaining Blood Sugar Levels Among Diabetics

Periodic telephone counseling can be a highly effective, low-cost tool for lowering blood-sugar levels in minority, urban adults with uncontrolled diabetes, says a new study. Albert Einstein College of Medicine researchers claim that the study's take-home message was that medications and printed self-management materials were necessary, but not sufficient to improve diabetes control.

Professor Elizabeth A. Walker said that people with diabetes need ongoing counseling about problem-solving and goal-setting for behavior change. During the research, the participants were mailed printed diabetes self-management materials and were given counseling sessions via phone.

Lead author Shadi Chamany said that meeting people where they were and working on a long-term plan together was the best way to make gains in chronic disease. She added that an intervention like this could be adopted by health systems and other organisations looking to improve diabetes outcomes through diabetes self-management interventions.

The study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Source-ANI