Authors (including presenting author) :
HO YY(1), NG MY(1), HUNG SC(1), CHEUK HY(2), KAM KW(2), CHOW WL(2)
Affiliation :
(1)Department of Medicine & Geriatrics
(2)Patient Resources Centre
Introduction :
The rising in prevalence of diabetes and the associated complications pose a serious pressure to HA. In light of the effective and low-cost Peer Support Models, a project namely the Holistic Self-management Project for Patient with Diabetes (the Project) has been launched since 2016. This is a medical social collaboration project with the joint effort of Department of Medicine & Geriatrics (M&G), Patient Resources Centre (PRC), a Patient Group named “the Sweetie Buddies” (SB) and Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs). In line with the strategic direction, the Project was strengthened in 2019 for providing a more holistic support to patients. The enhanced Project consisted six core activities, i.e. 1) Empowerment talks, 2) New case orientation session at DM Centre, 3) PG-led empowerment workshops, 4) Peer sharing sessions, 5) Self-management Scheme, and 6) Outings. In 2019, the Project served more than 2000 patients with over 1000 volunteer service hours.
Objectives :
This study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the enhanced Project implemented in 2019.
Methodology :
A mixed-methods evaluation was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of the Project, which included:
(1)Satisfaction survey for participants (n = 500).
(2)Focus group discussion with SB Committee Members (n = 12)
(3)Focused conversations with staff of M&G, PRC and NGOs (n = 8)
Result & Outcome :
In line with studies on Peer Support Models, most respondents viewed that the Project was very significant on improving their diabetes self-management, in which peer supporters from SB played an important role on sustaining their self-management behaviour. The staff of M&G had a positive view on the Project, and highly valued the effort of NGOs and SB which offered a different role in supporting patients with diabetes. Meanwhile, both staff of NGOs and SB Members highlighted that it opened an opportunity for them to reach a large group of target patients and provided a holistic framework for improving diabetes care, while peer support and community resources were crucial components. To conclude, the Project is an effective and cost-effective approach for improving diabetes care and outcome. With joint effort of TMH and community partners, it offers an accessible and continuous services across the patient care journey.
