DiaBEST: Best Practice Research in Diabetes and Other Chronic Conditions

The main focus of the research is diabetes across the lifespan in primary and specialist healthcare. As the knowledge base on diabetes has evolved, other chronic illnesses are also included, considering knowledge transfer and greater interdisciplinary approaches (e.g., cardiovascular disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

The main focus of the research is diabetes throughout the life course. Even with great medical and technical advances, there are still many people with diabetes who do not reach their treatment goals, and who have a great burden of diabetes and self-management in everyday life. We study various aspects of treatment, follow-up and self-management, and the impact of educational, digital and organizational approaches in primary and specialist health services.

We also conduct epidemiological studies of disease development and disease burden using data from large population-based studies and health registries. This is important for promoting health, function and participation, and reducing social inequalities in health.

Our research is well integrated into the Master of Clinical Nursing - Diabetes Specialty and Master of Clinical Nursing - Advanced Clinical General Nursing), through student involvement in our projects and research initiated from clinical practice. The research group contributes to the development of national and international guidelines and procedures.

Our diabetes research is focused on three main areas

Self-management, psychosocial aspects and patient-reported outcomes
Needs and follow-up in primary and specialist healthcare
Risk of disease development and complications, with specific focus on vulnerable groups

Education

Master of Clinical Nursing - Diabetes Nursing

Study coordinator: Professor Anne Haugstvedt

Members of the research group are responsible for all subjects in the education and contribute to knowledge-based teaching.

PhD Programme in Health, Function and Participation

PHDH908 Intervention studies, 5 credit points. Course coordinator: Professor Marjolein M. Iversen

Members of the research group have the main responsibility for the development and implementation of this course.

PHDH903 Research design and methods, 5 credit points. Course coordinators: Professor Ragnhild B. Strandberg og professor Hilde Kristin R. Riise.

Research projects

PROM og PREM analyser fra Norsk diabetesregister for voksne (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Anne Haugstvedt
Finansiering: Helse Vest, HVL, NSF, Diabetesforbundet, Stiftelsen DAM 

Hypoglykemi hos eldre hjemmeboende med diabetes (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv) Prosjektleder: Monica Hermann 
Ph.d.-kandidat: Mari Fløde
Finansiering: HVL, Diabetesforbundet, Olga og Minius Øieren stiftelse

Å leve med diabetes - psykologisk stress, byrde og komplikajsoner (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Hilde Kristin R. Riise 
Finansiering: Helse Vest

DiaFoto - Telemedisinsk oppfølging av diabetesrelaterte fotsår i kommunehelsetjenesten sammenlignet med tradisjonell oppfølging i spesialisthelsetjenesten (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Marjolein M. Iversen
Post doc: Kjersti M. Blytt 
Finansiering: Helse Vest, NFR, Norsk Sykepleierforbund, Stavanger Universitetsjukehus, Diabetesforbundet, InnoMed, HVL

Bra for baby og meg+
Prosjektleder: Sharleey O’Reilley (Dublin University College)
Prosjektleder: HVL: Marjolein M. Iversen/ Hilde Kristin Refvik Riise
Finansiering: EU

EUVECA - European platform for VET excellence in health care (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Hilde Kristin Refvik Riise
Finansiering: ERASMUS+ prosjekt delfinansiert av EU

Sykelighet, risiko for sykehjemsinnleggelse og mortalitet blant personer med og uten diabetes i hjemmesykepleien - en nasjonal register studie
Prosjektleder: Marjolein M. Iversen
Ph.d.-kandidat: Tonje Teigland
Finansiering: NFR, Diabetesforbundet, Norsk sykepleierforbund

Svangerskapsutfall relatert til fødeland (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder ph.d.-prosjektet: Ragnhild B. Strandberg
Ph.d.-kandidat: Astrid Stalheim 
Finansiering: OUS

Patients with COVID-19 in intensive care units - a follow-up study of mental and physical health (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Hilde K. R. Riise
Ph.d.-kandidat: Dina Løland
Ph.d.-kandidat: Elsa Irgens
Finansiering: HVL 

COVID-NURSE Clinical Trial
Prosjektleder: David A Richards

Kartlegging av diabeteshåndtering på sykehjem - en registerbasert studie ( Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Marjolein M. Iversen 

Diabetes and prediktorer for diabetes i HUSK studien. En 20 år prospektiv kohort av 50-år gamle kvinner og menn. (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv) Prosjektleder: Marjolein Iversen
Co-PI: Hilde Kristin Refvik Riise

Helhetlige og individuelt tilpassende pasientforløp i den kommunale helse- og omsorgstjenesten – allmennsykepleie til hjemmeboende eldre med samtidige somatiske og psykiske helseutfordringer
Prosjektleder: Ragnhild B. Strandberg
Ph.d-kandidat: Marit Anita Sunnarvik

Barn og unge med komplekse helseutfordringer
Prosjektleder: Beate-Christin Hope Kolltveit
Ph.d.-kandidat: Trude Østerbø

DiaMeno
Prosjektleder: Hilde Kristin Refvik Riise
Prosjektmedarbeidere: Ragnhild B. Strandberg, Ingvild Hernar

Perspectives and Needs of Parents of Children with Type 1 Diabetes: Utility and Psychometric Properties of the T1DAL Questionnaires in Norway.
Optimalisering av helsetenestene til barn med Type 1 diabetes.
Psykometrisk testing av T1DAL for å kartleggje erfaringar og behov hos foreldre til barn med type 1 diabetes - Nasjonalt vitenarkiv
Prosjektleder: John Roger Andersen. Medarbeider: Anne Haugstvedt
Ph.d.-kandidat: Hildegunn Styve Borkamo

Oral helse og interaksjonen med diabetes, kardiovaskulær sykdom, mental helse og søvn. Analyser fra HUNT studien (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Marjolein M. Iversen

Digital veiledet egenbehandling for personer med kols i primærhelsetjenesten - en pilot studie (Nasjonalt vitenarkiv)
Prosjektleder: Beate-Christin Hope Kolltveit
Ph.d.-kandidat: Haakon Kristian Kvidaland

Developing and Assessing Feasibility, Acceptability, Appropriateness, and Impact of the Enabling Sustainable and Safe health care through fundamental Nursing Care in Canada: The ESSENCE CANADA STUDY
Prosjektleder: David Richards, Lianne Jeffs
Finansiering: Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Casual blood glucose and subsequent cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality
Health in Hardanger – Diabetes research
Multidisciplinary user-led outpatient clinic
The use of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) to promote quality of clinical diabetes
Use of patient-reported outcome measures to increase the quality of care for patients with diabetes – a feasibility study
Being mothers and fathers of a child with type 1 diabetes aged 1 to 7 years: a phenomenological study of parents’ experience
Using Guided self-determination (GSD) to promote improved self-management in adults with type 1 diabetes – an intervention
Parenting children with type 1 diabetes
Clinical guideline for follow-up and treatment of elderly individuals with diabetes in municipal health and care services
Sexual dysfunction in women with diabetes

Publications

Hernar I, Cooper JG, Nilsen RM, Skinner TC, Strandberg RB, Iversen MM, Graue M, Ernes T, Løvaas KF, Madsen TV, Lie SS, Richards DA, Ueland GÅ, Haugstvedt A. Diabetes Distress and Associations With Demographic and Clinical Variables: A Nationwide Population-Based Registry Study of 10,186 Adults With Type 1 Diabetes in Norway. Diabetes Care. 2024 Jan 1;47(1):126-131. doi: 10.2337/dc23-1001. PMID: 37922320; PMCID: PMC10733651. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37922320/

Pouwer F, Ehrmann D, Strandberg RB, Ismail K, Aalders J, Rutters F, de Wit M, Speight J, Iversen M, Holt RIG. Diabetes and mental health. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2026 Feb 20:S2213-8587(25)00397-3. doi: 10.1016/S2213-8587(25)00397-3. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41730813. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41730813/

Riise HKR, Haugstvedt A, Igland J, Wilhelmsen-Langeland A, Søfteland E, Hermann M, Carlsson S, Skinner TC, Åsvold BO, Iversen MM. Diabetes distress and sleep impairment in type 2 diabetes: A population-based cross-sectional study-The HUNT Study, Norway. Diabet Med. 2025 Oct;42(10):e70106. doi: 10.1111/dme.70106. Epub 2025 Jul 25. PMID: 40714971. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40714971/

Riise HKR, Igland J, Graue M, Haugstvedt A, Østbye T, Søfteland E, Hermann M, Carlsson S, Åsvold BO, Iversen MM. Decreasing lifetime prevalence of diabetes-related foot ulcers in Norway: repeated cross-sectional population-based surveys from the HUNT study (1995-2019). Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2024 Apr 17;15:1354385. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2024.1354385. PMID: 38694943; PMCID: PMC11061349. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38694943/

Strandberg RB, Iversen MM, Jenum AK, Sørbye LM, Vik ES, Schytt E, Aasheim V, Nilsen RM. Gestational diabetes mellitus by maternal country of birth and length of residence in immigrant women in Norway. Diabet Med. 2021 Jun;38(6):e14493. doi: 10.1111/dme.14493. Epub 2020 Dec 23. PMID: 33290601. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33290601/

Haugstvedt A, Hernar I, Graue M, Strandberg RB, Stangeland Lie S, Sigurdardottir AK, Richards D, Kolltveit BH. Nurses' and physicians' experiences with diabetes consultations and the use of dialogue tools in the DiaPROM pilot trial: A qualitative study. Diabet Med. 2021 Jun;38(6):e14419. doi: 10.1111/dme.14419. Epub 2020 Oct 20. PMID: 33035378. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33035378/

Fløde, M., Hermann, M., Igland, J., Hernar, I., Sigurdardottir, A. K., Søfteland, E., Åsberg, A., Jenssen, T. G., & Haugstvedt, A. (2025). Hypoglycaemia and its associations with diabetes and age-related factors in older home-dwelling people with diabetes. BMC Geriatrics, 25(1), 1020. URL: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-025-06732-9  

Iversen MM, Igland J, Smith-Strøm H, Østbye T, Tell GS, Skeie S, Cooper JG, Peyrot M, Graue M. Effect of a telemedicine intervention for diabetes-related foot ulcers on health, well-being and quality of life: secondary outcomes from a cluster randomized controlled trial (DiaFOTo). BMC Endocr Disord. 2020 Oct 21;20(1):157. doi: 10.1186/s12902-020-00637-x. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33087074/

Kolltveit BH, Gjengedal E, Graue M, Iversen MM, Thorne S, Kirkevold M. Conditions for success in introducing telemedicine in diabetes foot care: a qualitative inquiry. BMC Nurs. 2017 Jan 13;16:2. doi: 10.1186/s12912-017-0201-y. PMID: 28100957; PMCID: PMC5237197. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28100957/

Smith-Strøm H, Igland J, Østbye T, Tell GS, Hausken MF, Graue M, Skeie S, Cooper JG, Iversen MM. The Effect of Telemedicine Follow-up Care on Diabetes-Related Foot Ulcers: A Cluster-Randomized Controlled Noninferiority Trial. Diabetes Care. 2018 Jan;41(1):96-103. doi: 10.2337/dc17-1025. Epub 2017 Nov 29. PMID: 29187423. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29187423/

Bendixen BE, Wilhelmsen-Langeland A, Lomborg K, Måkestad E, Skogheim TL, Schønberg A, ... & Haugstvedt A. (2025). Experiences With a Novel Micro-Choice-Based Concentrated Group Intervention for People With Type 2 Diabetes: A Qualitative Study. The science of diabetes self-management and care, 26350106241304422. URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/26350106241304422

Hernar I, Graue M, Strandberg RB, Lie SS, Sigurdardottir AK, Richards DA, Kolltveit BH, Haugstvedt A. Young adults with type 1 diabetes and their experiences with diabetes follow-up and participation in the DiaPROM pilot trial: A qualitative study. Diabet Med. 2021. Jun;38(6):e14535. doi: 10.1111/dme.14535. Epub 2021 Feb 16. PMID: 33547702. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33547702/

Research group leader

Ragnhild Bjarkøy Strandberg

Associate Professor

Kjersti M. Blytt

Modified 07.04.26