Critical analysis of CareSmarts model (Coursework Sample)

Critical analysis of CareSmarts model
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Abstract
The University of Chicago Medicine developed a program damped CareSmarts that allowed nurses to communicate with diabetic patients through mobile phone text messaging every day. They sought to explore the effect of everyday text messages and nurse follow-up on self-management behaviors of patients with type 2 diabetic patients.
Objectives
The program was meant to provide the diabetic patients with education on how to manage the disease and as reminders for them to follow the prescribed self-care measures.
Research and Design
Nurses sent text messages to diabetic patients every day. Some text messages required customers to send a feedback text in reply to whether they followed the reminders. A nurse would then call those who needed clarifications or those who consistently failed to reply to the reminders.
Results
The nurses were able to help the diabetic patients to overcome the obstacles to proper self-management of diabetes. This improvement to self-management subsequently led to efficient use of glycemic control, reduced medical visitations, reduced medical costs and ensured high medical satisfaction, (Nundy, 2012).
Challenges to the program
The CareSmarts program operated for six months in 2012 before being continued due to lack of enough maintenance funds.
Conclusions
The everyday text messages and the nurse follow-up calls improved the self-management habits of diabetic type 2 patients thereby improving the glycemic control and reducing costs (Nundy, 2012).
Critical analysis
This paper critically analyzes the CareSmarts model advanced by Nundy. According to Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt (2011), a critical analysis paper should evaluate the validity, reliability and applicability of the model in daily clinical practice.
Traditionally, all diabetic intrapersonal encounters take place in clinics. Nurses are supposed to ensure follow-up through frequent attention, complexity of treatment or inadequate support from their family. Research shows that many diabetic patients have numerous financial and non-financial needs that limit their ability to use the out-patient care (Hiss, 1996). Failure to attend the outpatient care worsens the outcomes of the disease management. Use of text message and phone call is a viable solution for improving diabetes patient follow-up in their homes (Albert et al., 1998).
Evidence rating
The CareSmarts model used a moderate comparison of trends in patient blood glucose levels of participants with those of the control group. The control group comprised of individuals who decided not to participate in the program and the pre-implementation and post-implementation comparison of the patient’s adherence to recommended self-management behaviors, medical visits and costs. The data captured showed that the patients who participated were more satisfied than those who failed to participate in the program.
Patient representation
The study used patients above 53 years of age who have been dealing with diabetes for over eight years. African-Americans accounted for two-thirds of the participants, the white, 26 percent while the minority groups took 7 percent. The program used three categories of participants of the same size depending on either their glycated hemoglobin was well controlled, moderate or poorly controlled.
Qualitativeand quantitative issues addressed
The program was able to address the devastating costs of diabetes (Cohen, 2007), the poor adherence to recommended self-management behaviors (Gazmararian, 2009), and utilized the unrealized potential of using text messages.
Challenges to this model
Few healthcare providers and patients use the text message approach in diabetes self-management programs, Dick (2011). This program failed because of poor funding, Nundy (2012).
Application of the program
This program can be used in nursing daily practice to educate, remind and address individual circumstances facing the diabetic type 2 patient’s self-management. It can be used to monitor patient’s response to medication and glucose levels. According to Nundy, the program can be used to give patients some tips on nutrition and exercises. Nurses ca...