Telemedicine Services for Emerging Adults with Type 1 Diabetes

Abstract

Emerging adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D) often find it challenging to manage their diabetes well due to the many competing priorities they are juggling during this time. The majority of emerging adults (72%) are already looking for health information online, so telemedicine may be an avenue to explore with them. Telemedicine services for individuals with T1D are becoming increasingly popular and have been found to be beneficial for those who use them. However, there are very few multi-component telemedicine services available for individuals with T1D, and none of them provide a comprehensive technology-based system. Additionally, while these multi-component T1D telemedicine systems often included emerging adults in the group under study, the average age of the study subjects was usually above the age range of emerging adulthood. This suggests that specific developmental needs of emerging adults are not being addressed by these telemedicine systems, nor are the issues faced by diverse populations. More research needs to be done to address which telemedicine services, if any, would be beneficial for this especially vulnerable population.