Effect of Type 2 Diabetes on the Quality of Life of Adult Patients Attending Health Center IVs an Hospitals in Kiruhura Disttrict.

Abstract

Background: Diabetes is a chronic progressive disease of an epidemic character, causing considerable human, as well as social and economic losses. Diabetes makes many demands on lifestyle and poses debilitating and life-threatening complications which overall have a negative impact on a patient‘s well-being and social life. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of type 2 diabetes on the quality of life of patients seeking treatment from public health facilities in Kiruhura district. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional, correlation design having both quantitative and qualitative aspects was used. This study‘s population included all patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and seeking heath services from any public health district in Kiruhura district. Kiruhura district has 14 public health facilities, from these; the researcher made a simple random representative sample of 10 health facilities (75%). A systematic random sampling technique was used to select the sample units. The study population of men was then divided by the (sample size) to establish a sampling interval, k. Every kth person on the list was selected as sample unit. The data collection method for this study was a face-to-face structured interview using a structured questionnaire. A data entry screen was developed using Epidata 3.1 version. After data was entered for all the sampled records and there after the data was exported to SPSS 16.0 software for data cleaning and analysis. Results: The results revealed that just above half of the respondents had a high quality of life (n=58, 54%), less than half of the respondents had a high psychological quality of life, less than half of the respondents had a high economic quality of life (47%). Two type 2 diabetes disease characteristics had statistically significant relationships with the physical quality of life of the respondents. There characteristics were the duration of being with the disease (p=0.047), and the type of disease complication experienced (p=0.004). Two diabetes disease characteristics had statistically significant relationships with the psychological quality of life of the respondents. These characteristics were the duration of being with the disease (p=0.001), and having dietary modifications as part of disease management (p= 0.039). There was only one disease characteristic which had a statistically significant relationship with the economic quality of life of the respondents, this was the disease complication experienced (p=0.035). There was no statistically significant differences in the qualities of life between the two groups (F<3, p>0.05).

Conclusion: Type 2 diabetes has had an effect of life of type 2 diabetic patients in Kiruhura district most of especially on the physical and psychological aspects of quality of life and to a less extent on the economic quality of life Recommendations; An important role of the therapeutic team is to develop the patient‘s feeling of having an influence on their illness, and to develop and maintain a style of coping with diabetes oriented towards solving problems associated with the disease. To enhance management of diabetic retinopathy, it is recommended that a diabetic eye check when diabetes is diagnosed and at least every two years thereafter.