OH-BUDDY: Mobile Phone Texting Based Intervention for Diabetes and Oral Health Management

The high prevalence of co morbid chronic conditions among minorities and underserved individuals is a public health problem that deserves research attention. We used the Design Science Research approach to iteratively build a persuasive mobile phone texting (SMS) based behavior change support intervention (OH-Buddy) that (1) addresses co morbid diabetes and periodontal chronic conditions, (2) uses the ubiquitous SMS as an intervention delivery channel to make it accessible to underserved populations, (3) and uses an informal caregiver ("buddy") as a supplementary means of support for patients. We are currently evaluating the OH-Buddy intervention in terms of its ability to engage participants and enable them to better self-manage their conditions. Expected outcomes include improvement in oral hygiene, blood glucose monitoring, medication adherence, physical activity, and healthy eating. Preliminary results based on self-reported performance data indicates the existence of moderate but steady improvement in patient engagement and self-management.