"Doing the program, our weight went down, our A1Cs went down": Benefits of a family diabetes self-management program for persons with diabetes and their support persons.

OBJECTIVES: Diabetes is a serious, prevalent chronic disease affecting more than 14.7% of US adults, and most of these have type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). A family diabetes self-management education and support (FDSMES) approach has been shown to benefit persons with diabetes (PWDs); however, gaps remain in the literature concerning the effects of FDSMES on communal coping, interpersonal relationships, and potential beneficial health effects for support persons (SPs). METHODS: To address gaps in the literature, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 dyads, consisting of a PWD and their self-identified support person (SP), assigned to the FDSMES arm and one PWD interviewed individually (n = 25). RESULTS: Our qualitative analysis identified emergent themes including: increased understanding and empathy among SPs, perceived improvements in quality and self-efficacy of SPs' supportive behaviors, improved PWD-SP relationships, and health benefits for both the PWD and SP. CONCLUSIONS: Based on our findings, greater attention needs to be paid to the benefits of FDSMES for SP in addition to the traditional PWD-focused outcomes, as health behaviors are often shared by SP. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Future research and evaluation of FDSMES programs should include measures of the benefits of FDSMES interventions for SPs.