Ryabov Igor, Richardson Chad
University of Texas-Pan American, Edinburg, TX, USA.
J Prim Care Community Health. 2011 Jan 1;2(1):21-5. doi: 10.1177/2150131910382556.
The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the use of community health workers (CHWs, aka promotoras de salud in Spanish) in the control of type 2 diabetes (diabetes mellitus) in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV). Known from the literature as "a disease of the 21st century" and being the third leading cause of death in the United States, type 2 diabetes is a very common disease in the RGV because of its predominantly Mexican American population, a group genetically vulnerable to the disease. Unlike prior studies that examined the overall effectiveness of the CHW model, the authors used registered CHWs as primary diabetes educators. Another innovation of this study was the authors monitored a wide range of biologic (HbA1c and body mass index [BMI]) and behavioral (diabetes knowledge, self-efficacy, self-management activities scores) outcomes. The research hypothesis was that the educational service provided by CHWs to the diabetic patients would assist them in controlling their disease. The design of the study was experimental. The target population consisted of Mexican American adults from RGV diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and willing to participate. The intervention group received monthly visits from CHWs. The results showed a significant improvement after one year of intervention in all outcomes, except BMI, in the experimental group.
本研究的目的是确定在里奥格兰德河谷（RGV）使用社区卫生工作者（CHW，西班牙语中又称promotoras de salud）控制2型糖尿病（糖尿病）的有效性。2型糖尿病在文献中被称为“21世纪的疾病”，是美国第三大死因，在RGV是一种非常常见的疾病，因为其主要是墨西哥裔美国人，这一群体在遗传上易患该病。与之前研究CHW模式整体有效性的研究不同，作者使用注册社区卫生工作者作为主要的糖尿病教育者。本研究的另一项创新是作者监测了广泛的生物学（糖化血红蛋白和体重指数[BMI]）和行为（糖尿病知识、自我效能感、自我管理活动得分）结果。研究假设是社区卫生工作者为糖尿病患者提供的教育服务将帮助他们控制疾病。该研究采用实验设计。目标人群包括来自RGV被诊断患有2型糖尿病且愿意参与的墨西哥裔美国成年人。干预组每月接受社区卫生工作者的探访。结果显示，干预一年后，实验组除BMI外的所有结果均有显著改善。
