Abstract
Persons from Somalia constitute the largest group of immigrants and refugees from Africa among whom diabetes-related health disparities are well documented. As one of the first steps toward developing a behavioral intervention to address diabetes among Somali immigrants and refugees, we administered a face to face interview-based survey to Somali and Latino adults with diabetes in a single community to assess diabetes knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. Respondents (N = 78) reported several barriers to optimal diabetes management for physical activity and glucose self-monitoring, as well as a high burden of disease and negative perceptions of diabetes. High participant engagement in disease management, self-efficacy, and social support were important assets. Similarities suggest that the shared experiences of immigration and related systemic socioeconomic and linguistic factors play a significant role in the understanding and self-management of diabetes in these populations. Together with previously collected qualitative work, the survey findings will inform development of a behavioral intervention to improve outcomes and reduce diabetes-related health disparities among immigrant and refugee groups to the U.S.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1432-1440 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health |
Volume | 18 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 1 2016 |
Keywords
- Community based participatory research
- Diabetes
- Immigrant health
- Somali
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Epidemiology
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health