Self-management of type 2 diabetes: perspectives of Vietnamese Americans

The purpose of this study was to explore diabetes self-management strategies and underpinnings of behaviors among Vietnamese with type 2 diabetes. Using Leventhal's illness representation model, semistructured interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of 23 participants, 14 women and 9 men. NVivo 8 software was used for content analysis. Data revealed that participants constructed implicit theories of the identity, causes, consequences, timeline, and controllability of diabetes, which were inconsistent with the biomedical literature. Participants labeled diabetes by their symptoms of hypo-/hyperglycemia, and they focused on the relief of these symptoms. However, the participants' focus on symptomatology undermined their use of blood glucose monitoring to manage diabetes as a majority of the participants had diabetes-related complications. Participants integrated the continuum of Eastern and Western treatment belief systems to achieve a balance to create harmony between the two systems.