Diabetes care among rural Americans

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Rural Health
• Diabetes Management

Background:

• Diabetes prevalence is higher in rural compared to urban United States populations.
• Managing diabetes in rural areas is complicated by limited access to care, socioeconomic status, aging, and minority group status.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a literature review on research concerning rural Americans with diabetes.
• To identify research gaps and summarize the quality of existing studies.

Main Methods:

• Searched CINAHL, PubMed, and MEDLINE databases for English articles published between 2000 and 2007.
• Used search terms including nursing, research, rural, rural nursing, rural health services/programs, and diabetes care.
• Included additional strategies like journal hand searching and networking.

Main Results:

• Identified 26 research reports representing all US regions except the Northwest.
• The majority of studies were descriptive (n=16), followed by program evaluations (n=7) and intervention studies (n=3).
• Examined and summarized the quality of each included study.

Conclusions:

• The review highlights a need for more intervention and program evaluation research in rural diabetes care.
• Understanding the quality of existing research is crucial for advancing evidence-based practices in rural diabetes management.