Use of Focus Groups to Inform a New Community-Based Youth Diabetes Prevention Program

Ngina McAlpin, Cordelia R. Elaiho (), Farrah Khan, Cristina Cruceta, Crispin Goytia and Nita Vangeepuram ()
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Ngina McAlpin: Teen HEED Intern, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
Cordelia R. Elaiho: Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
Farrah Khan: Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Cristina Cruceta: Teen HEED Community Action Board, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
Crispin Goytia: Teen HEED Community Action Board, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
Nita Vangeepuram: Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 15, 1-23

Abstract: There have been few youth-led diabetes prevention programs. Our objective was to conduct focus groups to explore peer influences on adolescent lifestyle behaviors and strategies for implementing a youth peer education model for diabetes prevention. We conducted six focus groups with 52 youth (ages 13–22; 62% male, 38% female; 64% Hispanic, 36% non-Hispanic Black) from East Harlem, NYC. We used a Thematic Analysis approach to identify major themes, compared findings, and resolved differences through discussion and consensus. Three dominant themes arose: (1) Adolescents generally encounter more unhealthy peer influences on diet and more healthy peer influences on physical activity; (2) Adolescents endorse youth-led diabetes prevention strategies and describe ideal qualities for peer leaders and methods to support and evaluate leaders; (3) Adolescents prefer text messaging to monitor behaviors, track goals, and receive personalized guidance. Using study findings, our Community Action Board developed a peer-led diabetes prevention program for prediabetic adolescents.

Keywords: youth; focus groups; community-based; diabetes prevention; peer education; mobile health technology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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