Childhood Diabetes

Purpose of the study: To compare three different regimes for children newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes: (1) traditional hospital based care, (2) intensive psychological support to the family, and (3) home based family psychosocial support. A further aim is to identify families were the child runs the risk of decreased metabolic control and to give those families increased support. Specific objectives: The main objectives of the study are: 1. to analyse the effects on child health of family-based home care compared to traditional hospital-based care, and 2. to analyse the effects on child health of family-based psychological treatment compared to traditional hospital-based treatment. The main focus will be on child health and changes in child health. Several variables will be collected for these purpose (see instruments, below), the main variable being the child's metabolic control. We will also analyse effects on the amount and content of (1) parental efforts (absenteeism from work; time use which is conditional on the child's diabetes etc), and (2) formal health care utilisation of the home-based care and psychological treatment, respectively, compared to traditional care.