Investigation of nurse-led diabetes self-management training
Investigation of nurse-led diabetes self-management training
Ali Aghighi,1,*Mehrad Nekouei,2
1. Student Research Committee, Shahid Beheshti University Of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran 2. Research committee, Shahid Beheshti university of medical science, Tehran, Iran
Introduction: Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases worldwide that threatens the health of society. Diabetes has a significant impact on the quality of life and today represents a real risk on a global scale due to the complications and diseases associated with this pathology. Hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) is a common feature of this disease. The average incidence in adults is 8.8%, and according to statistics, one in five Iranians suffers from diabetes or is at high risk of developing it. Early complications of diabetes include damage to the small blood vessels in the eyes, kidneys and nervous system, which can lead to vision problems and even blindness, kidney disease, neuropathy and the risk of amputation. Diabetes self-care refers to the process by which patients learn to live with the complications of diabetes in their social environment.
Self-care is expressed in the patient's ability to adhere to recommended behaviors, such as compliance with medication regimen, a diabetic diet and active physical activity. Research has shown that nurses are more likely to promote preventive behaviors when seeking health care compared to other healthcare workers. Nurses are in a unique position to influence positive change and transformation in healthcare by acting as a bridge between theory and practice. Despite great efforts, there is little evidence on the clinical effectiveness of diabetes self-management interventions for glycemic control performed by nurses, especially in Iran. In this review, we focused on the impact of diabetes self-management education provided by nurses.
Methods: The present study is a review study with the aim of investigating the effect of nurse-led diabetes self-management education. The data of this study were collected from PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar databases. The search was done using the keywords Effect, Nurse-Led, Diabetes, Self-Management and Education. In the initial search, 40 articles were found, and after evaluating the title and abstract, 18 articles were selected with the necessary conditions to participate in the present study, and general conclusions were made based on the information in the selected articles.
Results: Diabetes is a chronic disease that self-management and follow-up causes fewer complications for the patient. Self-management is the process of actively engaging in self-care activities with the goal of improving behaviors and well-being. Providing health education by nurses to diabetic patients increases awareness, changes behavior in preventing diabetes complications, increases self-efficacy, increases self-care activities (diet management, physical activity, blood sugar level monitoring and foot care). By applying specialized knowledge and skills and integrating competencies as educators, researchers, counselors, and leaders, nurses positively impact the delivery of health care services. The nurse plays an important role in increasing the patient's compliance with the management or treatment of any disease experienced by the patient. Support for improved adherence can be provided through educational interventions, which provide the clinical context for diabetes nurses to provide remote coaching and personal care while closely monitoring patients' progress.
Conclusion: Various methods of health education by nurses are now having a positive impact on improving and expanding self-care management and efforts to prevent diabetes complications, as well as on patient care by nurses, both directly and in communication with the patient and indirectly. This is possible by using the Internet for webinars or programs and brings tangible results in preventing diabetes complications and improving the quality of life of patients. With an increase of searches related to health promotion, it appears that nurses have yet to demonstrate a clear and obvious role in implementing health promotion activities. Rather, nurses can be viewed as public health promoters whose health promotion activities are based on correct knowledge and information delivery to patients. Nursing is a health-promoting profession, but several barriers related to organizational culture have a significant impact on the delivery of services.