Description:
The present work deals with applications of smart health and telemedicine in diabetes mellitus. It is investigated whether, and for what reasons people suffering from type 2 diabetes are willing to measure their blood sugar levels on a regular basis with a technical device and to transmit these values to a doctor via an online platform. For this purpose, 82 type 2 diabetics were interviewed as part of a quantitative study. The results of the quantitative study show that for many respondents the possible improvement of treatment is the greatest motivator for regularly measuring their blood glucose levels independently and transmitting them to physicians via Smart Health. Furthermore, most people see added value in personal control of their blood glucose levels and frequent feedback on their health. Likewise, the physician-independent overview of their own health and the quick and easy handling of the technology is an important reason to use Smart Heath. In addition, it can be seen that the recommendation of one's own physician to use the new technological possibilities has a very large influence on the motivation of the respondents, whereas the recommendation from other affected persons or family members and friends is not a great convincing factor. As the biggest drawback of digital data transmission; many respondents see the reduction in personal contact with the doctor. Furthermore, the additional cost of acquisition and the concern about the security of the data is a disadvantage for respondents. Based on these results, measures were developed to motivate type 2 diabetics to measure blood glucose levels and digitally transmit the values. A cost analysis will show what additional costs for health insurances are caused by type 2 diabetics, and what savings potential could be achieved by preventing diabetes or improving the health of those already affected with Smart Health.