Lj. Beeney et al., PATIENT PSYCHOLOGICAL AND INFORMATION NEEDS WHEN THE DIAGNOSIS IS DIABETES, Patient education and counseling, 29(1), 1996, pp. 109-116
People receiving a diabetes diagnosis must absorb information, change
habits and adopt new behaviours almost immediately. Guidelines thoroug
hly cover the medical aspects of initial management however the inform
ation and psychological needs of patients are not addressed, This stud
y aimed to identify diabetes patient needs for information and emotion
al support at the time of diagnosis. A sample of 1159 patients complet
ed a questionnaire which assessed their concerns and information prefe
rences at the time of diagnosis (response rate 64.4%). A sample of 100
general practitioners (GPs) were interviewed about their perceptions
of these issues using a subset of items from the patient questionnaire
. The diagnosis of diabetes was distressing for 60% of responders and
23% wanted more emotional support. Immediate issues such as injections
were major concerns for patients and GPs correctly identified these.
However GPs significantly overestimated complications as a concern for
patients at diagnosis. Patients preferred diabetes educators and cour
ses as sources of information. Satisfaction with information at diagno
sis was high (80%), however younger patients were dissatisfied with th
eir discussions concerning diabetes therapy. The findings suggest that
clinicians giving a diagnosis of diabetes should: (1) be aware of pat
ient variability in needs for emotional support and information prefer
ences, (2) ask patients for their preferences and offer choices if ava
ilable and (3) provide more information about treatment and increase p
atient involvement in discussions about therapy.