Abstract
With the exponential rise in chronic disease, Online Health Communities (OHCs) offer opportunities for people to share information and experiences. Type-2 diabetes is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases globally and one that can have a devastating effect on an individuals’ life. This paper aims to investigate the potential for OHCs practices to empower diabetic patients who are participating in a face-to-face Diabetes Group Education Program (DGEP). Using a qualitative content analysis of the three most popular type-2 diabetes communities on Reddit, we identified three salient themes including (1) exchange lifestyle-related advice, (2) experience of commonality, and (3) brainstorm potential solutions for daily challenges. Our findings revealed OHCs could extend the value of the faceto-face DGEP by leveraging online value co-creation behaviour. This paper provides a novel framework for maximising the effectiveness of the DGEP and identifies avenues for future research.
Recommended Citation
Rezaei Aghdam, Atae; Watson, Jason A. Dr; Miah, Shah Jahan; and Cliff, Cynthia, "Towards Empowering People Living with Type-2 Diabetes: A perspective on self-management in the context of a group-based education program" (2020). ACIS 2020 Proceedings. 43.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/acis2020/43