Physical Disability and Diabetes Mellitus; Qualitative Exploration of Patients’ Perception and Behavior

摘要

Background: Disability is a key indicator implicating both overall morbidity and success ofpublic health efforts to compress the period of morbidity among geriatrics for the overall population.Disabilities are more prevalent among diabetics than among those without diabetes.Objective: This study aimed to determine self-monitoring practices, awareness to dietary modificationsand barriers to medication adherence among physically disabled type 2 diabetes mellitus patients.Methods: Interview sessions were conducted at diabetes clinic – Penang general hospital. The invitedparticipants represented three major ethnic groups of Malaysia (Malay, Chinese Indians). An openendedapproach was used to elicit answers from participants. Interview questions were related to participant’sperception towards self-monitoring blood glucose practices, Awareness towards diet management,behaviour to diabetes medication and cues of action.Results: A total of twenty-one diabetes patients between the ages 35 - 67 years with physical disability(P1-P21) were interviewed. The cohort of participants was dominated by Males (n=12) and also distributionpattern showed that majority of participants were Malay (n=10), followed by Chinese (n=7) andrest Indians (n=4). When the participants were asked in their opinion what was the preferred method ofrecording blood glucose tests, several participants from low socioeconomic status and either divorcedor widowed denied to adapt telemontoring instead preferred to record manually. There were mixed responsesabout the barriers to control diet/calories. Even patients with high economic status, middle age35-50 and diabetes history of 5-10 years were influenced towards alternative treatments.Conclusion: Study concluded that patients with physical disability required extensive care and effectivestrategies to control glucose metabolism.