Author

Adam Altschuh

Date of Award

6-17-2015

Document Type

Capstone

Degree Name

Psy.D.

Department

Graduate School of Professional Psychology

First Advisor

Laura Meyer

Second Advisor

Hale Martin

Third Advisor

Natalie Ritchie

Keywords

Health coaches, Motivational interviewing, Health promotion, Diabetes, Overweight persons

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to evaluate health coaching at Denver Health Managed Care Center. We evaluated patients with diabetes and obesity who received a telephonic, motivational-interviewing intervention. Our hypothesis was that patients who received health coaching would have improved health outcomes compared to patients who received standard medical care alone. This research benefits this specific program in clarifying effectiveness (i.e. improvement in health and efficiency, indicated by length of treatment). Health coaching is a growing area of study. This research also adds to a broader conversation about what professionals best serve in the role of health coaches, what theoretical approach can be most effective, and how patients of lower socioeconomic status respond to this type of program. Health coaching participants had significantly improved A1c from baseline (M = 8.16; SD = 2.33) to follow up (M = 7.80, SD = 1.91), t(76) = 2.062, p < .05, but no improvements in other health outcomes . Conclusions and directions for future research are discussed.

Extent

19 pages

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