Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Recruiting

NCT Number: NCT07556354

Empowering Faith-based Communities to Provide Personalized Diabetes Self-management Education and Support (DSMES) in the Magic City

In this study, individuals living with diabetes in the Birmingham area will participate in a free, 3-month DSMES program hosted by MedsPLUS Consulting, a local independent pharmacy and wellness center, at a local faith-based organization. DSMES sessions meet twice a month and typically address topics including physical activity, nutrition, coping, and reducing risk and complications. Prior to beginning the program, participants will complete a questionnaire that assesses diabetes self-management behaviors (such as diet, physical activity, and medication adherence) and diabetes knowledge. Additionally, they will participate in a biometric screening where clinical data such as blood A1C, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and BMI are collected. This data will also be collected again after the completion of the program. In this program, participants will be assigned a community health worker who will contact them outside of scheduled DSMES sessions to provide support. Participants will also be randomly assigned to one of two cohorts, the Traditional cohort and the Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) cohort. The traditional cohort will use paper trackers to track blood pressure and blood sugar outside of DSMES sessions while the RPM cohort will utilize an RPM platform to track this data.

Recruiting

Interested in participating?

Request Info

Key information

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

New Hope Baptist Church

Birmingham, Alabama, 35211, United States

Location status: Recruiting

Location contact

Bertha Hidalgo, PhD

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Dashauna Ballard, PhD

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Dashauna M Ballard, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

205-934-6553

Sabrina Famuyiwa, MPH

CONTACT

[email protected]

About this study

Participants in this study will take part in a free, 3-month DSMES program hosted by MedsPLUS Consulting, a local independent pharmacy and wellness center. DSMES sessions meet twice a month and typically address topics including physical activity, nutrition, coping, and reducing risk and complications. Prior to beginning the program, they will complete questionnaires that assess diabetes self-management behaviors (such as diet, physical activity, and medication adherence) and diabetes knowledge. Additionally, they will participate in a biometric screening where clinical data such as blood A1C, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and BMI will be collected. This data will also be collected again after the completion of the program. MedsPLUS Consulting are licensed pharmacists skilled in conducting biometric screenings and will assist in the collection of the clinical data. MedsPLUS Consulting will also be responsible for disposing of the biospecimens collected for the study through use of the SHARPS program.

In this study, DSMES participants will be randomly-assigned to one of two cohorts. One cohort will participate in the DSMES program and use remote patient monitoring (RPM) to track their health throughout the duration. Remote patient monitoring allows a participant's healthcare team to visualize and monitor health data outside of scheduled DSMES sessions. These participants will be given blood pressure and blood glucose tracking devices that utilize Bluetooth to automatically upload their health data into an RPM platform, Prevounce, once measurements are taken. The second cohort will also participate in the DSMES program but instead will be provided traditional blood pressure cuffs and glucometers that will not upload their data to a mobile platform to track their health data. These participants will use traditional means (paper trackers) to track their health data and will provide health updates during scheduled communication with the team. One community health worker (two total) will be assigned to each cohort to monitor the progress of the participants. These community health workers will contact participants outside of scheduled DSMES sessions to assess barriers that may hinder progress.The results of these interactions will be shared with MedsPLUS Consulting and the study team.

As a means of assessing the barriers for implementation for the entire faith-based DSMES program that incorporates RPM, DSMES participants, leadership from the faith-based organization, community health workers, and MedsPLUS Consulting will be asked to participate in focus groups or semi-structured interviews.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Have a prior diabetes (Type 1, Type 2, or Gestational) or prediabetes diagnosis
  • Are aged 18 or older
  • Live in Jefferson County, Alabama
  • Have never participated in a DSMES program

Exclusion criteria

  • Not a resident of Jefferson County, Alabama
  • Completed a DSMES program

Treatment and study plan

Remote Patient Monitoring in a Faith-Based Program

Behavioral

Participants will be randomly-assigned to one of two cohorts. One cohort will participate in a faith-based DSMES program and use remote patient monitoring (RPM) to track their health throughout the duration. Remote patient monitoring allows a participant's healthcare team to visualize and monitor health data outside of scheduled DSMES sessions. These participants will be given blood pressure and blood glucose tracking devices that utilize Bluetooth to automatically upload their health data into an RPM platform, Prevounce, once measurements are taken.

Other names: dsmes

Traditional Cohort Faith-based DSMES program

Behavioral

The Traditional Cohort will also participate in the DSMES program but instead will be provided traditional blood pressure cuffs and glucometers that will not upload their data to a mobile platform to track their health data. These participants will use traditional means (paper trackers) to track their health data and will provide health updates during scheduled communication with community health workers.

Other names: faith based dsmes

Primary outcomes

  1. Change from Baseline in HbA1C results at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to end of treatment at 12 weeks

    HbA1C provides a person's average blood sugar over a 3 month period and will be measured at baseline and the end of the program via fingerprick test. The range of the test is from 4% to 14%. Normal ranges are from 4 to 5.6%, Prediabetes ranges are from 5.7% to 6.4%, Diabetes ranges are from 6.5% and above.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Change from Baseline in BMI at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to end of treatment at 12 weeks

    BMI is a screening tool that uses a person's height and weight to estimate their body fat and overall health risk. BMI will be calculated using the participant's height and weight data at baseline and end of program.

  2. Change from Baseline in systolic blood pressure at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From baseline to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Systolic blood pressure measures the force against artery walls when the heart contracts, with a normal reading below 120 mmHg. The change in this outcome will be measured via blood pressure cuff pre- and post-.

  3. Change from Baseline in Diastolic Blood Pressure at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Diastolic blood pressure measures arterial pressure when the heart rests between beats and will be assessed via blood pressure cuff reading at baseline and end of program. A normal reading is less than 80 mmHg.

  4. Change from Baseline in Total Cholesterol at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Total cholesterol measures the overall amount of cholesterol in the blood and will be assessed via blood sample at baseline and end of program. A desirable level is less than 200 mg/dL.

  5. Change from Baseline in Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) Cholesterol at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, often referred to as "bad" cholesterol, contributes to plaque buildup in arteries and will be assessed via blood sample at baseline and end of program. An optimal level is less than 100 mg/dL.

  6. Change from Baseline in High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL) Cholesterol at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, often referred to as "good" cholesterol, helps remove excess cholesterol from the bloodstream and will be assessed via blood sample at baseline and end of program. A desirable level is 60 mg/dL or higher.

  7. Change from Baseline in Triglycerides at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Triglycerides measure the amount of fat in the blood and will be assessed via blood sample at baseline and end of program. A normal level is less than 150 mg/dL.

  8. Change from Baseline in Body Weight at 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Body weight measures total body mass and will be assessed using a calibrated scale at baseline and end of program. It is reported in pounds.

Other outcomes

  1. Change in Diabetes Self-management Behaviors at Baseline and 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Diabetes Self-Management Behaviors will be assessed using the Diabetes Self-Management Questionnaire-Revised at Baseline and 12 weeks. Scores are calculated on a scale of 0-10 for the total score. Scores less than 5 for any of the measure's subcales suggest a need for improvement in the respective area (e.g. eating behavior, medication taking, glucose monitoring, physical activity, and cooperation with diabetes care team).

  2. Change in Diabetes Knowledge from Baseline and 12 weeks

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

    Diabetes Knowledge will be assessed from Baseline to 12 weeks utilizing the Diabetes Knowledge Questionnaire-Revised. The diabetes knowledge questionnaire revised is scored from 0-22 with higher scores indicating higher diabetes knowledge and lesser scores indicating lesser diabetes knowledge. There is not an official cutoff criteria for the scores reported.

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Dashauna Ballard, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

205-934-6553

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

Registry information

Official study title

Empowering Faith-based Communities to Provide Personalized Diabetes Self-management Education and Support (DSMES) in the Magic City: A Pilot Study

Acronym: MCPILOTDSMES

Important dates

Study start
2026
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
Apr 29, 2026
Registry last updated
Jul 15, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.