Abstract
The proposed project continues the investigators' efforts to understand how telehealth systems (TS), in this case handheld personal computers (HHPC), can be used to support family management of type 1 diabetes in children. In an initial pilot study, funded by the Exploratory Center, a computer device placed in the home (the Vital Sign Box - VSB) was used to provide health care practitioners with children's blood glucose levels on a daily basis. Pilot data from that study provided useful feedback regarding parents' and children's expectations and need with regard to computer assisted management of diabetes. Data also revealed that the VSB was not perceived as an acceptable adjunct to care.
Based on the findings of the initial pilot study, this project proposes to test the feasibility of using an alternative technology, a HHPC, for monitoring children's blood glucose levels. HHPCs are portable, affordable, they fully integrate with many computer software applications, and have the advantage of being easy to use. IN addition, they will provide the opportunity to test the potential of an incentive, in the form of password-based access to computer games, for sustaining children's motivation to report blood glucose levels on a daily basis. Although HHPCs have the potential to provide children, parents, and practitioners with timely feedback on children's blood glucose levels, their effectiveness as an adjunct to care has not been studied. The specific aims of the proposed study are to: 1) test the feasibility of using a HHPC to record and monitor blood glucose levels in children with type 1 diabetes; 2) evaluate the effects of a computer game incentive on children's use of the HHPC; 3) describe how families incorporate the HHPC into their daily management of their child's diabetes.
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