OU Researchers Develop Digital Program to Help Oklahomans Prevent Diabetes

OKLAHOMA CITY – One in eight Oklahomans has type 2 diabetes, and an estimated one-third of the state’s adult population has undiagnosed prediabetes. University of Oklahoma researchers are developing a digital outreach program to help people understand their risk and connect with resources to help prevent the disease.

Researchers at the TSET Health Promotion Research Center (HPRC) at the OU Harold Hamm Health Campus have received a $300,000 award from the OU Health Harold Hamm Diabetes Center to develop Connect2Care Prevent. The program will reach blood donors whose routine blood tests suggest they may have prediabetes or undiagnosed diabetes, helping them find information and resources to take the next steps.

The project is led by HPRC researchers Adam Alexander, Ph.D., Jordan Neil, Ph.D., and Cassie Mitchell, Ph.D., a registered dietitian. They will partner with Our Blood Institute to reach potential participants.

People who choose to enroll will receive digital education tailored to their needs, help understanding their risk, and access to diabetes prevention programs and healthcare. The goal is to help participants make informed decisions and take steps to reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

“One of the greatest challenges in diabetes prevention is helping people know what to do after they learn they are at risk,” Alexander said. “Our goal is to make those next steps clear by providing trusted information, practical tools, and connections to community-based prevention programs and care to halt the progression of type 2 diabetes.”

The project builds on HPRC’s Connect2Care digital platform, originally developed to improve prostate cancer screening and follow-up care among men at increased cancer risk. Researchers are adapting that approach to address diabetes, one of Oklahoma’s most pressing chronic health challenges.

The TSET Health Promotion Research Center’s mission is to reduce the burden of disease in Oklahoma by addressing modifiable health risk factors such as tobacco use, sedentary lifestyle, poor diet, cancer screening, and risky alcohol and other substance use through research, novel intervention development, and dissemination of research findings. 

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About the project

The HPRC receives funding from the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET), contract number 00004028. This funding from TSET and the State of Oklahoma enables the HPRC to accomplish its mission. HPRC also receives funding from the Stephenson Cancer Center through a National Cancer Institute Cancer Center Support Grant (P30CA225520).

About the University of Oklahoma

Founded in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a public research university with campuses in Norman, Oklahoma City and Tulsa. As the state’s flagship university, OU serves the educational, cultural, economic and healthcare needs of the state, region and nation. In Oklahoma City, the OU Harold Hamm Health Campus is one of the nation’s few academic health centers with seven health profession colleges located on the same campus. The OU Harold Hamm Health Campus serves approximately 4,000 students in more than 70 undergraduate and graduate degree programs spanning Oklahoma City and Tulsa and is the leading research institution in Oklahoma. For more information about the OU Harold Hamm Health Campus, visit www.ouhsc.edu.