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Reaching underserved populations and cultural competence in diabetes education

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Abstract

Diabetes self-management education has gained in importance over the past decade as research has documented the benefits of such interventions in improving glucose control and reducing diabetes-related complications. Although minority populations bear a disproportionate burden of diabetes, past strategies have not addressed cultural characteristics of groups typically underrepresented in diabetes research. Recent research literature on the development of culturally competent diabetes self-management is summarized and an example of a culturally competent intervention designed for Spanishspeaking Mexican Americans is presented. Recent research is laying the foundation for future intervention development to meet the cultural needs of racial/ethnic groups.

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Brown, S.A., Garcia, A.A. & Winchell, M. Reaching underserved populations and cultural competence in diabetes education. Curr Diab Rep 2, 166–176 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-002-0077-3

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