Utilising interactive focus groups to improve diabetic management within primary care.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Literacy Research
• Chronic Disease Management

Background:

• Health literacy significantly impacts patient health outcomes, particularly for chronic conditions like diabetes.
• Language barriers are a key determinant of health literacy, affecting a substantial portion of the patient population (31.4% in the studied general practice).
• A significant percentage of patients (26%) lacked confidence in managing their diabetes, highlighting a need for targeted interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To address barriers in diabetes management among patients with limited English proficiency.
• To enhance health literacy and self-management skills through a culturally sensitive intervention.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of focus group sessions in improving diabetes care.

Main Methods:

• Conducted focus group sessions with 20 patients with diabetes, providing translations and informational leaflets in Arabic and English.
• Identified key barriers to diabetes management, including understanding dietary guidance, medication adherence, and lifestyle factors.
• Assessed the intervention's impact using pre- and post-focus group questionnaire data.

Main Results:

• Patients demonstrated improved understanding of prescribed medications following the intervention.
• Participants reported increased confidence in managing their diabetes after attending the focus groups.
• Focus groups effectively identified and began to overcome barriers to effective diabetic management.

Conclusions:

• Focus group sessions offer a practical and effective method for patient education on chronic conditions like diabetes.
• These sessions empower patients to become more proactive in their healthcare, especially when language barriers exist.
• Standard general practice consultations may be insufficient for fully assessing and addressing patient understanding of their disease.