Family Medical History (Knowledge, Attitude) and Management Practices of Diabetes Patients Attending Medical Out Patient Department in Federal Capital Territory Abuja

Abstract

Objective: The study assessed the knowledge, attitude and management practices of diabetes patients attending medical outpatient department in Federal Capital Territory Abuja. Materials and Methods: A total of 120 randomly selected respondents between 18 - 65 years were assessed using standard methods in a cross-sectional survey involving the use of validated semi-structured questionnaires. Results: The findings revealed that 60% of patients were without health insurance despite the fact that they are educated; 53% have been diagnosed and began their treatment between 2 and 5 years. For the knowledge indicators, 50% of the patients know two types of diabetes, 35% were able to list two types of diabetes while 56.70% could not list any type of diabetes. Attitude assessment among the diabetic patients revealed that 79.17%, 62.50%, 68.33% and 51.67% visit a physician; do monitor their blood glucose, have altered their eating habit and agreed that sedentary lifestyle is not good respectively; 41.67% of the respondents read health materials. In the area of lifestyle, changes made by the diabetic patients include check-up (3.33%), diet (18.33%) and exercise (20.00); 40.00% and 14.17% made a combination of two and three lifestyle changes respectively. Majority of the respondents do have their blood glucose level checked monthly. Conclusion: Based on the research findings, the diabetic patients’ knowledge, attitude and dietary practices are contributing factors to their high fasting blood glucose and poor nutrition status.