The effect of educational intervention on knowledge, attitude and glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Background: Diabetes is a chronic disease associated with high morbidity and mortality rate. The present study aimed to assess the effect of educational intervention on knowledge, attitude and glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients.Methods: An interventional study carried out on 100 diabetic patients attending three primary health care units in Port Said City. Patients were subjected to three health education session where information about diabetes was provided. Knowledge, attitude and glycemic control were assessed before and 3 months after the intervention.Results: After implementation of the educational intervention, a significant improvement was observed in patients' knowledge and attitude. The mean of total knowledge score increased from 2.69±1.44 in the first visit to 5.30±1.36 in the second visit and there was marked improvement in the patient awareness regarding different aspects of diabetes. The mean levels of fasting blood glucose (FBG) and Glycosylated Hemoglobin (HbAlc) has significantly decreased at the second visit compared to the first visit (180.33±34.81; 8.69 vs. 168.04±28.56, 8.50±0.97 respectively). Also there was a strong negative correlation between the knowledge Attitude (KA) score and HbA1c, and between the KA score and FBG.Conclusions:The results concluded that educational intervention is an effective tool that implicated a significant change in patients' knowledge and attitude and effectively improved patient glycemic control.