Measuring the diabetes knowledge of nurses in long-term care facilities

A knowledge test was developed by a local diabetes educators' group to evaluate the diabetes knowledge base of 59 nurses currently employed in four long-term care facilities in eastern North Carolina. The test contained items in the following categories: monitoring, medication, hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, illness care, diet, exercise, foot care, and patient/family education. The results of the diabetes knowledge test were analyzed according to overall test scores as well as scores in each of the selected categories. The overall scores ranged from 42% to 89%, with a group mean of 67% (passing = 70% or higher). The scores in the individual categories ranged from 18.6% for monitoring and 23.8% for medications to 91.5% for patient/family education.