Effect of personalized messages tailored to distinct health behavior clusters on healthcare-seeking in high-risk populations for noncommunicable diseases in Japan: A randomized controlled study.

Abstract

This randomized controlled study aimed to investigate the effect of personalized messages tailored to distinct health behavior clusters on healthcare-seeking behavior and disease management in individuals at risk for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). This study included individuals insured by a single health insurance association in Japan, all of whom had at least one value exceeding the recommended thresholds for physician consultation based on NCDs. We sent personalized physician visit messages tailored to five distinct health behavior clusters identified in our previous study. These messages incorporated cluster-specific motivational elements to encourage physician consultation. The control group received a standard message encouraging consultation without behavioral tailoring. We utilized medical claims data to evaluate physician visit rates within 3 months and assessed disease management improvements using the following year's health checkup data, comparing outcomes between the two groups. The final analysis included 155 participants (mean age: 48.0 years, 85.6 % men), with 76 in the intervention group and 79 in the control group. No significant differences in physician visit rates within 3 months were observed between the two groups (intervention group: 10.6 %, control group: 17.7 %, p = 0.252). Similarly, no significant differences were found in the improvement rates for blood pressure, lipid levels, and blood glucose (intervention group: 45.9 %, control group: 41.0 %, p = 0.546). However, participants who visited a physician demonstrated notably higher improvement rates in both groups (intervention group: 75.0 %, control group: 71.4 %). The present study revealed no significant differences in physician visit rates or disease management outcomes between participants receiving personalized motivational messages and those receiving traditional messages. Future research is warranted to address barriers to healthcare access and ensure consistent follow-up care to improve the effectiveness of personalized interventions in managing NCDs.