Description
Background: Type 2 diabetes is a common chronic condition in the United States and requires ongoing follow-up to monitor glycemic control, review laboratory results, adjust medications, and address self-management needs. Telehealth has become an increasingly common component of diabetes care, yet its role in routine follow-up remains underexamined. Existing qualitative studies highlight both benefits, such as convenience and reduced travel, and limitations, including challenges with physical assessment and sharing home monitoring data. However, less is known about how adults with type 2 diabetes determine where telehealth fits within the practical realities of routine follow-up care. Objective: To explore how adults with type 2 diabetes perceive the role of telehealth in routine diabetes follow-up. Methods: This qualitative study will use in-person focus groups conducted in Oxford, Mississippi. Eligible participants will be adults aged 18 years or older with type 2 diabetes who have completed at least one telehealth follow-up visit for diabetes management within the past 12 months. Maximum-variation purposive sampling will be used to recruit participants with diverse demographic and clinical characteristics. Five focus groups of approximately 6-8 participants each are planned, for an anticipated sample of 30 to 40 adults. Discussions will be guided by a semi-structured focus group guide, audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using thematic analysis. Coding will be iterative and will involve analytic memoing, codebook development and refinement, independent review of a subset of transcripts, and comparison of patterns across groups. Expected Results: The study is expected to identify how patients distinguish between follow-up needs they view as appropriate for telehealth versus in-person care, with likely themes related to convenience, communication, perceived clinical adequacy, data sharing, and continuity of care. Conclusion: Findings will provide patient-centered evidence to guide more effective and equitable integration of telehealth into routine diabetes follow-up and may inform care models that better align visit format with patient needs.
Publication Info
2026.