Honors Theses

Date of Award

2014

Document Type

Undergraduate Thesis

Department

Pharmacy Administration

First Advisor

Donna West-Strum

Relational Format

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

Purpose: To increase glucose control, advanced technologies are being integrated into diabetes self-management in children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM). Two technologies being adopted is Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin Infusion (CSII), more commonly known as insulin pumps (pumps) and Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM). The purpose of the study was to better understand the experiences of parents whose T1DM child is using insulin pumps and CGM devices in diabetes self-management. Methods: This study was approved by the University of Mississippi IRB. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a sample of parents in the Mid-South region of the U.S. The local chapters of JDRF and Camp Hopewell sent an e-mail inviting parents to participate with a link to the electronic survey. A follow-up e-mail reminder was sent a week after the initial e-mail was sent. SPSS 20.0 (Chicago, IL) was used to calculate frequencies and descriptive statistics. Results: 98 parents of children with TIDM responded to the survey, with only 47 families indicating their child was currently using an insulin pump and/or CGM device. Participants described the relationship they experience with their physician. Then, participants reported which members of their health care team helped them integrate technology into their child's diabetes self-management and the support they receive pertaining to integrating technology into the child's diabetes self-management. Respondents indicated their sources of information about integrating advanced diabetes technology into their child's diabetes management. Participants also ranked the benefits and barriers associated with insulin pump and CGM device use. Conclusion: Families with better patient-physician relationship quality and with more perceived support from their diabetes health care team were more satisfied with insulin pump use. However, few children in this geographic area have integrated CGM into diabetes self-management. There are psychosocial issues to consider when integrating insulin pumps and CGM into diabetes self-management. Some healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, may be underutilized. As more patients attempt to adopt advanced technologies, it will be important for pharmacists to be trained to help patients use their insulin pump and CGM devices.

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