an individualized plan of care. Knowledge and education specifically designed for the patient's level of understanding has been said to be central to self-care monitoring. When patients understand the symptoms that correspond with their disease, they can learn to recognize these symptoms early on. Then they can self-manage their disease and prevent complications. Additional research to improve self-care monitoring is underway in the following fields: Mindfulness: Mindfulness and meditation, when incorporated into a one-day education program for diabetic patients, have been shown to improve diabetic control in a 3-month follow-up in comparison to those who received the education without a focus on mindfulness. Decision-making: How a patient's decision making capacity can be encouraged/improved with the support of their provider, leading to better self-care monitoring and outcomes. Self-efficacy: Self-efficacy has been shown to be more closely linked to a patient's ability to perform self-care than health literacy or knowledge. Wearable technology: How self-care monitoring is evolving with technology like wearable activity monitors. Management Self-care management is defined as the response to signs and symptoms when they occur. Self-care management involves the evaluation of physical and emotional changes and deciding if these changes need to be addressed. Changes may occur because of illness, treatment, or the environment. Once treatment is complete, it should be evaluated to judge whether it would be useful to repeat in the future. Treatments are based on the signs and symptoms experienced. Treatments are usually specific to the illness. Self-care management includes recognizing symptoms, treating the symptoms, and evaluating the treatment. Self-care management behaviors are symptom- and disease-specific. For example, a patient with asthma may recognize the symptom of shortness of breath. This patient can manage the symptom by using an inhaler and seeing if their breathing improves. A patient with heart failure manages their condition by recognizing symptoms such as swelling and shortness of breath. Self-care management behaviors for heart failure may include taking a water pill, limiting fluid and salt intake, and seeking help from a healthcare provider. Regular self-care monitoring is needed to identify symptoms early and judge the effectiveness of treatments. Some examples include: Inject insulin in response to high blood sugar and then re-check to evaluate if blood glucose lowered Use social support and healthy leisure activities to fight feelings of social isolation. This has been shown to be effective for patients with chronic lung disease Barriers to management Access to care Access