The Diabetes Education and Marketing Support (DEMS) project works with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to improve the management of diabetes and outcomes for people living with diabetes.
FHI 360 develops science-based, tested and culturally appropriate tools and resources that empower partners to effectively address diabetes prevention and management, especially in underserved populations. Project activities include:
- Identifying and detailing audience needs, gaps and priorities
- Developing, tailoring and testing educational resources and tools to meet priority needs
- Increasing awareness and use of resources and tools through promotion and partner engagement
- Monitoring and evaluating reach, use and impact of activities
The DEMS project conducts primary and secondary quantitative and qualitative research about people currently managing diabetes to inform the development of outreach messages, materials and dissemination channels to best reach people when they are most ready to make healthy behavior changes. FHI 360 created a checklist rooted in 19 behavior change theories and models (including CDC’s Clear Communication Index and the National Institutes of Health’s Plain Language Standards) to ensure that disseminated materials will deliver appropriate messages in a way that prompts action toward healthy behavior change.
Outreach messaging and materials target community health workers, states, grantees, diabetes educators, community-based organizations, nurses, health coaches, physical therapists, pharmacists and other stakeholders who work with people living with diabetes to increase enrollment in type 2 diabetes management programs.
With the goal of increasing enrollment in diabetes self-management education and support programs (DSMES), FHI 360 used formative research to build the case for creating a collaboration between CDC, the American Diabetes Association, the American Association of Diabetes Educators and representatives from other key stakeholder groups, such as family medicine practitioners, nurse practitioners and people living with diabetes, to develop a unified brand for accredited, recognized programs. This work aims to be the most widespread effort to increase awareness of, understanding of and engagement in these programs to date. Key activities for the brand development process include brand discovery research, brand identity testing and brand rollout.
