Knowledge, Awareness of Diabetes Mellitus in Nurses Working in Tertiary Care Hospital of Peshawar

Abstract

According to the global burden of disease (2021) statistics, 529 million people were living with diabetes with the incidence of 6.1% globally. With increase in diabetes prevalence, nurses need comprehensive knowledge for effective patient care. Nurses, as part of multidisciplinary teams, play a crucial role in patient education for lifelong diabetes management. Objective: To assess the nurses’ knowledge awareness about diabetes mellitus working in tertiary care hospital in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Methods: This was cross-sectional study conducted in the tertiary care hospital of Peshawar, levels of knowledge were evaluated using the 40-items Knowledge score questionnaire. Additionally, outlined demographic characteristics of the participants. Pearson correlation was applied to assess associations between nurses' knowledge scores and relevant demographic variables. Results: Among 280 nurses, the average knowledge score was 36.11 ± 1.78 (90.3%) on a 100-point scale. While participants of the study were correctly answered the acute and chronic complications of DM such as slow wound healing, damage of (Kidney, Nerve, Foot), Diabetic ketoacidosis and Hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state were 92.1%, 85.4%, 87.9%, 98.2%, 92.9% and 72.9% respectively. Moreover, a statistical difference in knowledge scores was observed between nurses with and without a family history of diabetes (P 0.00). Conclusions: Nurses have shown good knowledge on the various aspects of diabetes mellitus. However, there were some areas which need improvement. The general knowledge was better, but the score on dietary management, role of somatostatin in glucose regulation, renal and eye complications, and hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state was below 90%.