Type 2 Diabetes Program Evaluation, Coursework Example

Reducing the proportion of adults who are obese living with type 2 diabetes

The evaluation design which I have selected for this program is experimental. In experimental design, practical experiments are carried out and closely monitored for effective and accurate results (Gallivan, 2008). Experimental design is used in circumstances where the desired results or findings can be obtained from practical/real life experiments. The following scenario will be appropriate for application of experimental design:

Obesity, being the number one risk factor for type 2 diabetes, is highly prevalent among adults. Statistics reveal that close to 35% of adults suffer form this condition. This makes most adults susceptible to development of type 2 diabetes. The main cause of obesity is overweight and this causes higher risk of insulin resistance because too much fat hinders the ability of the body to effectively utilize insulin. The only healthy way to reduce overweight is to maintain consistency in body exercises. Let us consider a scenario of proving whether exercises will help to reduce obesity and reduce the proportion of adults who are obese living with type 2 diabetes (Manzella, 2006).

Two separate groups of obese adults will be tested for insulin and their level of insulin recorded. One of the groups will be subjected to regular and relevant exercises for a prescribed period of time while the other group will not be subjected to any exercise. After the prescribed period, both groups will be tested again for insulin level. It will be found that adults in the group subjected to regular exercises have their insulin level reduced due to reduction of body fats as a result of exercise (reduced fat means reduced body hindrance to utilize insulin). The opposite will be true for the group that was not engaged in any exercise. Therefore, this is a practical experimental design meant to evaluate how regular exercises can reduce the proportion of obese adults living with type 2 diabetes (Manzella, 2006). The advantage of this design is that the results are reliable and based on practical evidence thus easier to convince the donors or supporters of the program. The limitation is that it requires dedication, hard work, consistency and perseverance to achieve accurate practical results. A lot of resources are also required for practical experiments (Gallivan, 2008).

References

Gallivan, J. (2008). The National Diabetes Education Program evaluation framework: how to  design an evaluation of a multifaceted public health education program. Prev Chronic  Dis, 5(4), 121-136.

Manzella, R.N. (2006). Type 2 diabetes risk factors. Medical review journal, 15(3), 16-29.