Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Diabetic Patients Following Up In King Khalid University Hospital about Insulin Use; a Cross-Sectional Study

Author(s): Faisal Alshuwair, Abdulaziz Alalwan, Ibrahim Alshayea, Nasser AbuDujain, Eman Alhammad, Ibtisam Alkhlassi, Yousef Alluhaymid

Abstract Objectives: There are not many studies evaluating the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of insulin self-administration in Saudi Arabia; therefore, we conducted this study aiming to determine the level of knowledge diabetic patients have on insulin use. amd also to establish the most common mistakes, most patients do.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed in the Outpatient setting at King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Patients who are following up in Diabetes Outpatient Clinics at King Khalid University Hospital and taking Subcutaneous insulin injections. Ethical approval for the study was sought from the Institutional Review Board at King Saud University, College of Medicine. The “insulin self-administration” questionnaire was used.

Results: A total of 378 participants responded to our questionnaire. We found an overall fair level of knowledge among participants. 87.83% acknowledged the presence of high blood sugar levels as indicative of diabetes. A significant majority of 89.68% recognized the outer thigh area as appropriate, and a significant majority of 92.06% (348 individuals) affirmed their ability to inject themselves in the right places. 60.05% were females, and 39.95% were males. We found a significant correlation between "Understanding Diabetes Management and Insulin Administration" and "Insulin Injection Techniques and Site Rotation in Diabetes Management" (r = 0.104, p = 0.044). However, A weak positive correlation was found between "Understanding Diabetes Management and Insulin Administration" and "Understanding Misconceptions and Realities of Insulin Usage in Diabetes Care" (r = 0.019, p = 0.706) and between "Understanding Misconceptions and Realities of Insulin Usage in Diabetes Care" and "Insulin Injection Techniques and Site Rotation in Diabetes Management" (r = 0.025, p = 0.626).

Conclusions: Patients with diabetes in the current research had fair awareness of and practices regarding insulin storage and delivery. Patients lacked proficiency in the crucial and key procedures of administration