FACTORS HINDERING ATTITUDE TO TREATMENT AMONG PATIENTS WITH TYPE-2 DIABETES MELLITUS IN THE NIGER DELTA, NIGERIA by AGOFURE OTOVWE and OYEWOLE OYEDIRAN E. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH PROMOTION AND EDUCATION FACULTY OF PUBLIC HEALTH UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN

Introduction Diabetes is a chronic disease primarily defined by high levels of glucose in the blood, giving rise to risk of tiny blood vessel damage It is the sixth leading cause of death worldwide, with mortality figure of 3.2 million annually (Morbidity Mortality Weekly Report, 2002) Type-2 Diabetes mellitus could be well managed if patients adhere strictly to treatment regimen However, patient’s attitude to treatment recommendations has been shown to influence level of adherence to treatment

Statement of problem Attitude to treatment recommendations rates are typically lower among patients with chronic conditions (Jackevicius et al., 2002). The observed reasons for these trends are: -poor clinic accessibility and drug availability -high costs of treatment and care -inadequate supplies of trained staff and equipment -use of alternative health care providers among others

Justification In view of the need to prevent or delay the development of diabetes complications, diabetic patients should be empowered to manage their illness better by: determining their attitude to treatment identifying possible factors hindering attitude to treatment

Objectives Broad objective: To investigate factors hindering attitude to treatment among patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus in the Niger Delta, Nigeria Specific objectives: To determine attitude of type 2 diabetic patient to treatment To identify possible factors hindering adherence to treatment

Methodology Study design: A descriptive cross-sectional design was adopted Study population: The target population were all the type-2 diabetic patients aged 35 years and above that attended the out-patient diabetic clinic within the study period Instrument for data collection: A semi-structured interviewer- administered questionnaire was used to collect the data Sample size determination: An estimated sample size of 350 was calculated

Methodology cont’d Sampling procedure: Purposive sampling method was adopted among all consenting patients Data analysis: Data generated were analysed using SPSS version Descriptive statistics was used to evaluate frequency distribution. Chi-square test and logistic regression were performed to test for associations between variables of interest with level of significance set at p<0.05

Methodology cont’d The attitude to medication treatment was measured by a 14-point scale graded; partial (0-8) and strict (>8) While the attitude to dietary treatment was measured by a 4-point scale graded; partial (0-2) and strict (>2) ETHICAL CONSIDERATION: The study followed the ethical principles guiding the use of human participants in research, which include Respect for persons, Beneficence, Non–maleficence and Justice Ethical approval was obtained from Delta State Ministry of Health

Results Table 1: Socio-demographic characteristics and attitude to treatment Note : Red coloured figures represents attitude to medication treatment Black coloured figures represents attitude to dietary treatment Variable (Age in years) Frequency (%) N=350 Attitude to treatment Poor Good (29.7%)33(9.4%) 34(9.7%)72(20.6%) 71(20.3%) (32.3%)40(11.4%) 45(12.9%)73(20.9%) 68(19.4%) Male137(39.1%)46(13.1%) 79(22.6%)91(26.0%) 90(25.7%) Female213(60.1%)76(21.7%) 86(20.0%)137(39.1%) 134(38.3%) Married273(78.0%)93(26.6%) 97(27.7%)181(51.7%) 177(50.6%) No formal education34(9.7%)13(3.7%) 12(3.4%)21(6.0%) 22(6.3%) Tertiary education98(28.0%)35(10.0%) 34(9.7%)63(18.0%) 64(18.3%)

Results cont’d Table 2: Measurement of attitude to treatment Attitude to treatmentFrequency(%) N=350 Poor attitude to medication treatment122(34.90%) Good attitude to medication treatment228(65.10%) Poor attitude to dietary treatment126(36.0%) Good attitude to dietary treatment224(64.0%)

R esults cont’d Table 3: Determinants of Poor Attitude to medication treatment Variables df P-Value OR 95% CI Desire to take many drugs for treatment Lack of faith in the efficacy of prescribed drugs alone Urine test is not necessary if I take my recommended drugs regularly Routine blood test is not necessary if I take recommended drugs regularly

Results cont’d Table 4 : Factors hindering attitude to treatment VariablesFrequency (n=350)(%) Difficulty in sticking to recommended diet 242(69.1%) Long queues and waiting times at the clinic 231(66.0%) Side effects from recommended drugs 205(58.1%) Burden of ingesting or injecting drugs 199(56.9%)

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION Multiple drug combination as part of treatment regimen and compliance with prescribed diets are among the several factors hindering attitude to treatment recommendations among the study population Thus, patient counseling and health education on diabetic care with emphasis on improving attitude to medication and dietary treatment regimen should be organised regularly for diabetic patients among many other strategies

REFERENCES WHO, Peer Support Programs in diabetes. A report of World Health Organization Consultation, 5-7 November 2007 Morbidity Mortality Weekly Report, Social Economic Status of women with diabetes United States A CDC weekly Report, Retrieved October 19, 2008 Jackevicius, C. A., Mamdani, M. and Tu, J. V Adherence with statin therapy in elderly patients with and without acute coronary syndromes. Journal of the America Medical Association 288: Beran, D. and Yudkin, J Diabetes care in Sub-Saharan Africa. Lancet 368:

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION