Exploration of the patient's voice

Area of Science:

• Medical Communication
• Behavioral Science
• Endocrinology

Background:

• Diabetes self-management requires significant behavior modification.
• Patient perspectives are crucial for effective healthcare, yet often communicated indirectly.
• Healthcare providers need tools to better understand patient experiences in diabetes care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze linguistic differences between individuals with diabetes who adhere to treatment and those who do not.
• To identify specific language patterns associated with diabetes self-management adherence.
• To enhance healthcare provider understanding of patient perspectives.

Main Methods:

• Multidimensional analysis of in-depth telephone interviews with 108 individuals with diabetes.
• Stratified recruitment based on sex, race, and glycated hemoglobin (A1C) levels.
• Quantitative analysis of participant transcripts to compare linguistic features between adherent (A1C <7%) and non-adherent (A1C >7%) groups.

Main Results:

• Ten linguistic features showed significant frequency differences between adherent and non-adherent groups.
• Adherent individuals used more linguistic features expressing personal stance.
• Expressions of personal stance were linked to a stronger sense of agency in the adherent group.

Conclusions:

• Linguistic analysis reveals distinct communication patterns in diabetes self-management.
• Increased use of personal stance language correlates with better treatment adherence.
• Understanding these linguistic cues can improve patient-provider communication and diabetes care outcomes.