Experiences of Motivational Interviewing in Virtual Health-care Visits for Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Qualitative Analysis

Objectives

The purpose of this qualitative study is to identify barriers minimizing the effectiveness of motivational interviewing during virtual clinic encounters for individuals with type 2 diabetes based on the capability, opportunity, motivation, and behaviour (COM-B) model.

Methods

One-on-one semistructured interviews were conducted from March to June 2023, with 17 adults with type 2 diabetes (64.7% female; median age 69 years [range 47 to 83 years]) followed at St. Michael’s Hospital (Toronto, Canada). Themes from transcribed interviews were identified through descriptive analysis using a grounded theory approach.

Results

The following main themes were identified: 1) face-to-face appointments strengthen provider–patient rapport and collaboration; 2) virtual encounters reduce patient accountability and hinder health-seeking behaviour; and 3) individuals with physical disabilities and/or low technological proficiency experience decreased provider accessibility. Protective factors that can mitigate these negative impacts include establishing rapport during in-person appointments before transitioning to virtual appointments and incorporating a video component during virtual encounters.

Conclusions

Several barriers of virtual appointments currently limit the effectiveness of motivational interviewing for individuals with type 2 diabetes and make it difficult to provide person-centred care, especially by phone. However, there are protective factors that help to maintain healthy lifestyle behaviours, even after transitioning to virtual settings, and are areas for optimization moving forward.