Health Intervention Addressing Increased Prevalence of Diabetes in a Chinese Immigrant Community: Evaluation Findings of Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Diabetes Self-Management Workshops

Background:

Chinese-speaking immigrants have been found to have less knowledge about diabetes self-management compared to other Asian immigrants who prefer to speak English. Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, with funding by the New York State Health Foundation, seeks to bridge this gap in the low-income and underserved Chinese-American community in New York City by designing and implementing a culturally and linguistically appropriate community-based DSME program as part of the Chronic Care Model for diabetes care.

Objectives:

We describe the design and implementation of culturally and linguistically appropriate community-based DSME workshops in accordance with the American Diabetes Association national standards, evaluate the short-term changes in knowledge, self-efficacy, and self-care behavior in participants, and identify the facilitators and barriers to improving self-management.

Methods:

Brief, validated scales were translated into Chinese and used to assess changes in knowledge, self-efficacy, and behavior, and a focus group was conducted to explore contextual factors that motivated or hindered effective self-management.

Results:

Survey data show that DSME workshops increased knowledge and awareness of diabetes topics, as well as changed attitudes toward physical activity and eating habits. Focus group data show that participants found all DSME workshops to be beneficial and a supplement to their provider visits as it gives more detailed instructions on how to manage their diabetes.

Conclusions:

The intervention had positive impacts on participants. They were eager to participate in diabetes educational events – showing a need for more outreach to the Chinese-American community regarding diabetes.