Pilot testing of a diabetes information and management kiosk in a rural community pharmacy

by 1978- Barnett, Mary

Educating the 17 million people with diabetes in the United States about self-care for their disease management remains a challenge to the healthcare system. A web-enabled, interactive touch screen health information and management kiosk placed in a rural community pharmacy has the potential to address this issue. The kiosk may aid in patient monitoring and provide education materials needed to control Type 2 diabetes. Electronic databases record the activity of kiosk users and store data downloaded from patients’ glucometer. The databases allow for remote monitoring of patients’ blood glucose and kiosk maintenance. Ten participants used the kiosk through the four-month pilot trial and increased their understanding of diabetes care as well as general diabetes knowledge. Participants demonstrated a decrease in weight but not average blood glucose (A1c) or blood pressure. The data from this pilot study suggests the kiosk can be an effective tool for providing diabetes patients with health information and for monitoring blood glucose.