Young adults with type 1 diabetes' clinical outcomes and satisfaction related to the use of videoconferencing for type 1 diabetes healthcare: a narrative review

Introduction: Young adulthood is well documented as being a particularly challenging area of type 1 diabetes (T1D) healthcare. Many young adults with T1D (YAT1D) are distracted from effective disease self-management; T1D healthcare service engagement can be problematic and inconsistent, and high rates of unplanned healthcare contacts prevail. Video conferencing use can facilitate services to be flexible and responsive. We aimed to evaluate clinical outcomes and satisfaction related to the use of videoconferencing for T1D healthcare in YAT1D.Methods: A quantitative narrative review was undertaken, using a systematic process. PubMed, Scopus and CINAHL were searched (until August 2023) to identify relevant articles, using Medical Subject Headings and keywords. A total of 12 records (eight studies) from four countries were retrieved.Results: Ten records considered clinical outcomes; eight of these records focused on the effectiveness of videoconferencing as part of routine care. Findings largely demonstrate benefits to glycaemic control, particularly when used during the COVID-19 pandemic; no data were available relating to the impact of videoconferencing use on blood pressure and lipid control in YAT1D. Four records considered satisfaction with use of videoconferencing, with data indicating YAT1D were satisfied with the use of videoconferencing technology.Conclusions: There is a need to configure T1D healthcare services to incorporate and offer use of videoconferencing technology, where applicable, appropriate and acceptable for YAT1D, and feasible and workable for service providers. This will require some adjustments from healthcare systems and possible changes to funding mechanisms.