Current Status of Self-management and Barriers in Elderly Diabetic Patient

Background: Diabetes has a critical effect on elderly diabetic patients' quality of life.Elderly diabetic patients have many difficulties in diabetes self-management because their physical, psychological and social functions are decreased as a result of the aging process.Therefore, we evaluated the current status of self-management and barriers in elderly diabetic patients Methods: The sample was 124 elderly diabetic patients (over 61 years) who visited a hospital and two senior welfare centers in Seoul from July to August 2006.The results of the study were analyzed by descriptive statistics, ANOVA, T-test, and hierarchical regression.Results: 1) Diabetes self-management was composed of insulin injection, diet, exercise, foot management, smoking and drinking alcohol.An average score of self-management in the elderly diabetic patients was 4.5784.In demographic variables, only job status showed a significant effect on self-management.2) Barriers such as 'forgetting taking diet and medication', 'being interrupted by others', and 'lack of family and social support' were significant factors in diabetes self-management.3) These barriers for diabetes self-management were still significant in the case of controlling demographic and clinical variables. Conclusion:Diabetic educator should identify the significant factors that affect patient's self-management such as whether they have a full-time job, or the type of their job.In addition, diabetes education should focus on assertiveness training to deal with various interpersonal barriers and empowerment for enhancing patient's self-efficacy.These approaches would benefit patients who experience barriers of diabetes self-management (KOREAN DIABETES J 32:280-289, 2008)