Diabetes Management: Utilizing Community Health Workers in a Hawaiian/Samoan Population

BACKGROUND: Although not widely utilized, community health workers (CHWs) have been shown to enhance diabetes education and management efforts among racial/ethnic minority populations. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness of CHWs on diabetes management among a population with primarily Native Hawaiian and Samoan ethnic minority participants with HbA1c greater than 10%. DESIGN: Descriptive study comparing HbA1c readings of participants with diabetes with and without CHW intervention. PARTICIPANTS: Of 116 eligible participants, 74% were either Native Hawaiian or Samoan. RESULTS: The mean baseline HbA1c for all eligible participants was 10.9+/-0.8%. The 80 participants who completed CHW intervention had a 2.2+/-1.8% (p.<.01, compared with baseline) mean reduction in HbA1c, compared with a 0.2+/-1.5% reduction for those without CHW intervention. CONCLUSION: Community health workers had a positive impact on diabetes management defined in terms of improved HbA1c amongst this predominantly Native Hawaiian and Samoan population.