Managing diabetes can be frustrating and challenging. Add in the demands of daily life, such as taking care of family or dealing with pressures at work, and it’s no surprise that diabetes can have an emotional toll.
LISTEN is a program that aims to support adults with the emotional side of managing diabetes. LISTEN stands for Low Intensity mental health Support via a Telehealth Enabled Network. Adults with diabetes have access to up to four (45-60 minute) sessions. The sessions are arranged with a diabetes health professional (nurse or dietitian). Adults with diabetes work together with the health professional one-on-one to enhance their problem-solving skills. Sessions are delivered via telehealth (phone or video call) so that people with diabetes anywhere in Australia can access support.
We are conducted a trial to test whether LISTEN helps people feel better emotionally with managing their diabetes. Here are some statistics from the study so far:
We are a few months away from the end of the study. So, we would like to shout out to everyone who has made this study possible. We could not have done this study without the incredible generosity and support of so many:
To all the people with diabetes who took part: We thank you so much for trusting us with your concerns and giving this study your time. We appreciate you taking part in this 6-month study alongside all the other priorities in your lives. Thank you for completing the surveys and providing your valuable feedback. We have learned so much from you and your experiences. It has been invaluable in helping us to find out if LISTEN improves the emotional and mental wellbeing of adults with diabetes. Thank You.
To the health professionals employed at, and funded by, Diabetes Australia: Thank you for your unwavering dedication and commitment during the training and delivery of the LISTEN program. Your compassion, expertise and empathy make a real difference in the lives of people with diabetes. Thank You.
To our partners and academic collaborators: Thank you for your support with planning and running the study, for promoting the trial and for your continued collaboration. We especially extend our appreciation to our Diabetes Australia colleagues running the National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS). Thank you for sending out the study recruitment adverts to over 147,000 NDSS registrants over the study’s 8-month recruitment campaign. Thank You.
To our study funders: We thank the MRFF Targeted Translation Research Accelerator initiative for providing the funding to trial this novel, telehealth program to support the mental health of Australian adults with diabetes. We also thank all our study partners and academic collaborators for their cash and in-kind contributions, which were crucial to making the study happen. In particular, we thank Diabetes Australia for significant cash and in-kind contributions, which supported the delivery of LISTEN as a real-world telehealth service. Thank You.
Finally, to all the people behind the scenes – members of our community advisory committee, the people who reviewed our proposal, and the people who reviewed and approved our ethics application. These are the unsung heroes. No study goes ahead without their invaluable support, and they are never named on any study materials or publications. Thank You.
The LISTEN trial concluded in October 2023, and we look forward to sharing our results with you soon.
For now, we’d like to leave you with some feedback from participants who received the LISTEN program during the study:
“…it was helpful to have a little bit of the emotional support, … to be able to talk to them about things and how it relates to diabetes. I think it was better having that broader approach rather than just a psychologist”
“It did make a difference and certainly gave me some valuable tools to help support myself in the future to tackle overwhelming challenges that affect how I feel about having diabetes – one small step at a time. It helped me adjust my perspective, to consider I could have greater control back in my life. I believe [LISTEN] would be vary valuable to others like me”
Warm regards,
Dr Edith Holloway (Project Lead) & Dr Roslyn Le Gautier (Project Manager) on behalf of the LISTEN Study team.
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