Can mHealth, when monitored by a primary care provider, maintain hemoglobin A1c values in target range with adolescents between the ages of 10-19 diagnosed with type 1 diabetes mellitus?

Diabetes mellitus is an international epidemic affecting millions of individuals worldwide. In Canada, an estimated 3.4 million individuals are living with diabetes mellitus— approximately 9.3 percent of the total population (Canadian Diabetes Association, 2018). A high prevalence of diabetes mellitus comes with a substantial cost; the direct annual cost associated with diabetes mellitus is expected to reach 3.1 billion dollars by 2020 (Bilandzic & Rosella, 2017). The Canadian Pediatric Society recognizes that there are currently 33,000 children and adolescents aged 5-18 years old living with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) (as cited in the Diabetic Children’s Foundation, 2018). As children and adolescents with T1DM are in the process of developing physically and psychologically, they are at an increased risk of developing complications of diabetes that require short to long term attention and monitoring. The utilization of mobile technology to provide healthcare services is commonly referred to as mHealth. Such technology offers an opportunity to address the challenges of chronic disease management with this technology- intelligent population (Kitsiou, Paré, Jaana, & Gerber, B. 2017). As a component of the Master of Science in Nursing- Nurse Practitioner program at the University of Northern British Columbia, the following is an integrative review to answer the research question: Can mHealth, when monitored by a primary care provider, maintain hemoglobin A1c values in target range with adolescents between the ages of 10-19 diagnosed with type 1 diabetes mellitus?