Impact of Education via Mobile Phone on Knowledge, Attitude, Practice and HbA1C of Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Karaj-Iran

Abstract

Introduction: Technological progress and its impact on the social context are so vast that their healthcare field has been affected by these changes. So, research and development in the field of mobile technologies and techniques for data transfer and the adoption and implementation of health education in this way seems indispensable.Methods: This study was a randomized controlled trial. A total of 81 type II diabetes patients were randomly assigned into two groups: the experimental Group (n= 43) and control group (n= 38). Educational Short Message Service (SMS) was sent to the cellphones of the members of the experimental group. Data were collected through valid questionnaires (α= 0.75), the laboratory sheet reporting the patients’ KAP and HbA1C before and after the education via mobile phone and the demographic characteristic list. . Data gathering was run at the baseline of the study and after three months intervention and by SPSS17 and Lisrel software, using chi- square, Factor Analysis and ANCOVA, and the significance level of 0.05.Results: The results of this study showed that the experimental group compared with the control group improved significantly in knowledge (p≤ 0.001), practice (p≤ 0.001) and HbA1C (p≤ 0.001) Also, the fitness indicators exhibited a proper fit.Conclusion: The findings of this investigation showed that intervention using SMS via cellphone was effective in the management of type II diabetes mellitus (DM). Mobile health, with high potential in improving health, lifestyle, and perhaps more research in the field of e-Health applications could be taken into consideration as policymakers and health care providers to use electronic management in health system.