Peer Education Group Intervention to Reduce Psychological Insulin Resistance: A Pilot Mixed-Method Study in a Chinese Population

INTRODUCTION Psychological insulin resistance (PIR) is common among type II diabetes (DM) patients. Although interventions to reduce PIR have been suggested, there is no standardized intervention to reduce PIR. This trial aimed to assess the preliminary effectiveness of a well-structured interventional patient group (for sample size calculation for larger trials), as well as the acceptability and feasibility of this intervention group. METHODS This study used a quasi-experimental, mixed-method approach. Fifty-three patients with DM were recruited to an interventional group that included a general education of DM and insulin, an insulin pen demonstration, and an insulin-using peer sharing session. Each group consisted of around 15 participants and lasted for 2 h each. The validated Chinese version of the insulin treatment appraisal scale (C-ITAS) was administered before, immediately after, and 1 month after the intervention to measure any changes in the participants' PIR. Patients were interviewed to assess the acceptability of the intervention until data saturation. RESULTS Repeated measures ANOVA showed that the post-intervention C-ITAS scores (immediately post group and at 1 month) were lower than the pre-intervention C-ITAS scores (p < 0.001). Changes in multiple attitudes toward insulin were detected before and after the group intervention. Ten patient interviews were conducted and found that the intervention was welcomed by all interviewees; no discomfort or adverse reactions were reported. CONCLUSION Preliminary results showed that patient intervention groups with general education, insulin pen demonstration, and peer sharing appeared to be safe, acceptable, and effective in reducing PIR. Larger multicenter trials are needed to generalize these findings.