Feasibility study of automated interactive voice response telephone calls with community health nurse follow‐up to improve glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background: Thailand has a shortage of community health nurses for supporting the self‐management of type 2 diabetes, which is prevalent and poorly controlled. Aim: This study examined the feasibility and acceptability of a self‐care assistance programme for poorly controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus. The SukapapNet programme consisted of automated interactive voice response calls to patients and automated follow‐up email notifications to their nurses. Design: Single‐arm pre‐post trial. Methods: Six nurses and 35 type 2 diabetes patients were recruited from primary care settings in suburban provinces in Thailand. The study was conducted from June 2017 to November 2017. We assessed patients before and after 12 weeks of the SukapapNet intervention. Results: Mean glycated haemoglobin decreased by 0.9%. Patients reported reduced carbohydrate consumption, increased physical activity, increased medication adherence, improved sleep quality, and more frequent foot care. Patients and nurses both recommended using the intervention, although nurses expressed concerns regarding increased workload. Conclusions: The study programme could improve outcomes in Thai type 2 diabetes patients. Further study of the impact of technology upon nurses' workload is warranted. SUMMARY STATEMENT: What is already known about this topic? Prevalence of type 2 diabetes is increasing in Thailand, and nurses who play an important role in health care at the community level are limited.Mobile health strategies including short message service, automated telephonic monitoring, and internet‐based education have been successfully applied in Thailand with prenatal care, depression, Parkinson disease, cardiac rehabilitation, and diabetes.Although mobile health is a promising way to bridge gaps in managing type 2 diabetes, an effect of automated mobile health with nurse follow‐up has never been investigated in primary care settings. What this paper adds? Automated interactive voice response monitoring of diabetes patients with emailed updates to nurses is acceptable to Thai patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes.Mobile health strategies could also improve Thai nurses' ability to help diabetes patients with glycaemic control.To reduce burden for nurses, summaries of patients' responses should be emailed on a less‐than‐daily basis. The implications of this paper: This study contributes to the knowledge of how mobile health strategies could help Thai patients with type 2 diabetes achieve glycaemic control and increase nurses' engagement with these patients.Innovative use of automated interactive voice response with feedback to community health nurses should be further developed in Thailand.Future research should investigate a mobile health benefit to diabetes glycaemic control through a large‐scale randomized controlled trial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]