New Publication Looks at Enhancing the Health System User Experience for Those with T1D
In February, a research team led by Dr. Jamie Boisvenue published their findings in the journal Health Expectations. Titled, Developing a Quality Improvement Framework to Enhance the Health System User Experience for Individuals Living With Type 1 Diabetes: The Reshape T1D Study, the paper looks at how user experience design could improve healthcare for those living with type 1 diabetes (T1D).
The study had four patient partners and four clinicians as co-researchers. They used questionnaires and semi-structured interviews to survey 41 adults living with T1D across Alberta. The participants offered feedback that highlighted the need for more equitable, accessible and empathetic care. Suggestions included:
- A centralized hub with consistent and up-to-date education and resources
- Greater flexibility in appointment times
- More choice in who is part of a person’s care team
- Care that reflects the reality of the patient’s circumstances
So far, the reaction to the paper has been positive, with the team noting that people have been very invested in the process and the findings. “The public has been excited to see (1) how exactly their tax dollars have gone to producing great research that has impacted health policy and health systems, and (2) that we have involved people with lived experiences and healthcare professionals throughout the entire research process,” says Boisvenue.
For the research team, the involvement of patient partners has been an essential component to this work. Researchers often ask questions of people with lived experience, but having a person with lived experience co-developing those questions leads to a much improved experience. “Simply put, this kind of research is not fully possible without patient partnership,” says Boisvenue. “The unique insights from patient partners, drawn from their lived experiences, combined with professional expertise of healthcare providers, has allowed us to uncover phenomena that would otherwise go unnoticed. Their involvement not only strengthens the rigor of the research but also makes the process more meaningful and empowering for me as a researcher.”
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Reshaping How we Research Type 1 Diabetes
On this episode of Actions on Diabetes, host Krista Lamb will be chatting with two guests who are looking at ways to improve the coordination of care for people living with type 1 diabetes. The Reshape T1D project tries to understand how people interact with the health care system by involving those living with T1D and their clinicians in designing the research process.
Our guests are Jamie Boisvenue, a PhD student at the Alberta Diabetes Institute and the University of Alberta, and Patient Partner Kathleen Gibson. They are hoping to highlight have lived experience to help clinicians provide better patient-forward care.
