Culturally tailored diabetes education program for Chinese Americans: a pilot study

The prevalence of type 2 diabetes among Chinese Americans is rising, and cultural and socioeconomic factors prevent this population from achieving optimal diabetes management.

To assess the feasibility and acceptability of a culturally appropriate diabetes management program tailored to Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes and the preliminary outcomes of the intervention.

Forty eligible subjects were recruited from the community to participate in this 10-session program developed by integrating Chinese cultural values into an established Western diabetes management program. Feasibility and acceptability of the program were evaluated by the percentage of participants meeting the course objectives and satisfaction with the program. Outcomes measures included the Diabetes Quality-of-Life (DQOL) survey, body weight, blood pressure, and HbA1c levels measured before, after, and 3 months after the intervention.

Thirty-three participants completed all 10 sessions and the outcome measurements. Attrition rate was 17.5%. The majority of the participants understood the course content (75%) and identified and demonstrated various diabetes management skills (70% and 82.5%, respectively). All participants who completed the program were "very satisfied" with the program. With regard to the outcome variables, 43.6% of the participants lost more than 5 pounds and most had a reduction in blood pressure at 3 months after completion of the program. Mean HbA1c decreased from 7.11 to 6.12 postintervention. Significant improvements on the DQOL also were reported.

Culturally tailored diabetes management may be effective in Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes. Further study, with a larger sample size and a control group, is recommended.