A Descriptive Study to Assess the Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Related to Insulin Self Administration among Diabetic Patients in a Selected Tertiary Care Hospital of West Bengal

Background According to the World Health Organization (WHO) report, India today heads the world with over 32 million diabetic patients and this number is projected to increase to 79.4 million by the year 20301. Recent surveys indicate that diabetes now affects a staggering 10-16 % of urban population and 5-8 % of rural population in India. Approximately 12 % of diabetics follow the method of self administration of insulin as a treatment modality. The effectiveness of insulin therapy can be enhanced by appropriate and correct use of insulin and promoting awareness and right attitude Aim of the study The present study aimed at assessing the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding Insulin Self Administration (ISA) among diabetic patients. Methods and Materials The research design selected for the study was non experimental descriptive cross sectional design. The tool used was a semi structured interview schedule.50 diabetic patients on Insulin Self Administration ( ISA) were considered using purposive sampling for the study. Study was conducted at various Out Patients Departments of a selected tertiary care hospital in Kolkata. Result The result of the study revealed that 76 % of subjects had good knowledge regarding ISA compared to 20 % who had poor knowledge.56 % of samples had good attitude towards ISA vis a vis 34 % who had excellent attitude and 10 % had negative or unfavorable attitude towards ISA. Statistically no significant association was seen between knowledge, attitude and practice however a significant association was seen between age of the person and attitude towards ISA. Significant knowledge deficit was seen in areas like storage of insulin, cleaning of site, rotation of sites and technique of injecting. There was a total agreement that ISA gives them confidence and independence in controlling Diabetes. Conclusion It is concluded that education is likely to be effective when the characteristics of the patients in terms of their knowledge, attitude and practices about self care management are known. Therefore, it is of paramount importance, that people with diabetes mellitus should be provided with ongoing high quality need based education to be delivered by skilled health care providers.