Self-management has become a popular term for behavioral interventions as well as for healthful behaviors. This is especially true for the management

In light of health disparities and the growing prevalence of chronic disease, there is a need for community-based interventions that improve health behaviors and health status. These interventions should be based on existing theory. This study aimed to evaluate the health and utilization outcomes of a 6-week community-based program for Spanish speakers with heart disease, lung disease, or type 2 diabetes. The treatment participants in this study (n = 327) took a 6-week peer-led program. At 4 months, they were compared with randomized wait-list control subjects (n = 224) using analyses of covariance. The outcomes for all the treatment participants were assessed at 1 year, as compared with baseline scores (n = 271) using t-tests. At 4 months, the participants, as compared with usual-care control subjects, demonstrated improved health status, health behavior, and self-efficacy, as well as fewer emergency room visits (p <.05). At 1 year, the improvements were maintained and remained significantly different from baseline condition. This community-based program has the potential to improve the lives of Hispanics with chronic illness while reducing emergency room use.

Research from JAMA Internal Medicine — Can a Back Pain E-mail Discussion Group Improve Health Status and Lower Health Care Costs? — A Randomized Study