Decisional conflict among people with diabetes mellitus or hypertension attending primary care

Abstract

Decisional conflict refers to the personal uncertainty about which course of action to take when the choice involves risk, regret, or challenge to personal life values. To determine the level of decisional conflict (DC) of people with Diabetes Mellitus (DM) or High Blood Pressure (HBP) attending primary care centers (PCC) in Chile. A Spanish version of the Decisional Conflict Scale (DCS) was applied to patients who were recruited if they had DM or HBP, were 18 years old or older, and had an appointment at the PCC the day of the recruitment. The scale was self-administered. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to determine association between DC and other variables of interest while controlling confounding variables. The scale was answered by 1075 participants from 24 PCC aged 62 ± 14 years (74% female). Average score for the DCS scale was 16.8 ± 12.9 of a maximum of 100 points indicating a higher DC. The sub-scale "information" had the highest score (19.9 ± 20.0). Low educational level and older age were significantly associated with higher DCS scores (p < 0.05). Having a bad health perception, deciding to initiate a medical treatment and being attended by a doctor were significantly associated with higher DC. These associations persisted when confounding variables such as sex, age and education were controlled. People with DM or HBP who have a poor health perception, who initiated their treatment and were attended by a doctor had higher levels of DC, independent of their age and educational level.