Diabetes self-care: lessons from research on the family and broader contexts.
The foundation of diabetes management is the self-care behavior of the patient. All of the systems within which the person with diabetes interacts, as well as the media and broader social and cultural values, affect this self-care behavior. In this article I focus on recent research that has examined the link between relationships in the patient's intimate network (i.e., family and close friends) and in the patient's exchange network (i.e., patient-provider relationship, Internet support). The goal of this review is to identify relational targets associated with self-care behaviors that are potentially modifiable within the diabetes medical care setting. Evidence-based suggestions are made for points of intervention entry, and areas for future research are explored.
Anderson
Barbara J
BJ
Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Children's Nutrition Research Center, 1100 Bates Street, Houston, TX 77030, USA. bja@bcm.tmc.edu
D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000379:methods; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D012648:Self Care; D012944:Social Support