2029-P: Innovating Diabetes Care in Rural Georgia

Introduction and Objective: Diabetes represents a growing health burden with disproportionately higher prevalence, mortality and morbidity in the rural South, relative to urban counties in the U.S.. In rural areas, access to specialized diabetes care, as well as technological advances, are often inadequate. The objective of this project was to identify region-specific diabetes challenges and develop effective technological solutions for rural communities in the Southeastern U.S. Artificial intelligence and other health technological solutions were used to meet a critical need in rural areas. Methods: A diabetes problem discovery workshop was organized, based on human-centered design and community-based participatory principles. A Steering Committee of rural health leaders helped recruit subject matter experts (SMEs) representing medicine, nursing, pharmacy, nutrition, mental health, public health, laboratory science, and information technology. Participants refined 25 challenges faced by patients and other stakeholders in rural Georgia into ten priority diabetes-focused problems. Technological innovations were then co-developed by computer science students and rural health stakeholders, culminating in a “DiaTech” demonstration day. Results: The problems reflected gaps in clinical practice, systemic care delivery, medication access and adherence, and nutrition and lifestyle support. The need for offline functionality, digital literacy support, and relation-based care was emphasized. Mobile health applications were developed for nutritional guidance, including an AI powered chat-bot that uses food pantry and refrigerator inventory to customize healthy meal planning. Other mobile health applications engaged users with comic-like visuals and interactive guidance on diabetes self-management and culturally tailored education on medications. Conclusion: This community-based, problem-focused approach represents a model for driving contextually appropriate and innovative health technologies for low-resource settings.