Development of a Health Literacy Promotion Program (HeLPP) to Promote Self-Care Behaviors and Quality of Life among Rural Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: Preliminary Results

Background and Objective: We developed a protocol for a health literacy promotion program (HeLPP) to promote self-care behaviors and quality of life (QOL) among T2DM patients in Chaldoran County, Iran. To develop the educational program, we primarily conducted a behavioral and educational assessment on the pre-test data collected from the participants. In this paper, we report a summary of the protocol and the primary results of the pre-test findings. Materials and Methods: The HeLPP protocol is naturally developed for a randomized controlled trial with Solomon four-group design. Developing the HeLPP, we will conduct it for both test groups. To plan the HeLPP and to find the main predictors of self-care behaviors and QOL, we firstly conducted a cross-sectional study (as a needs assessment phase). So, applying simple random sampling, data on 160 patients were collected and analyzed. The validated scales (Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ), Self-care activities scale, and Diabetes QOL Brief Clinical Inventory) were used to collect data.Results: The mean age of participants was 61.08 ± 11.35. The most significant determinants of self-care behaviors were understanding (β: 0.26), reading skills (β: 0.23), and knowledge (β: -0.19). Self-care behaviors (β: 0.29) and decision-making (β: 0.28) were significant predictors of QOL. Conclusion: Considering the predicting role of understanding, reading skills, and decision-making for self-care behaviors and QOL of the rural T2DM patients, the focus of HeLPP should be on clear communication, goal-setting, and teach back strategies. The developed protocol seems to be helpful in promoting the outcome variables of the study.