Adherence of Type 2 Diabetic Patients to Self-Care Activity: Tertiary Care Setting in Saudi Arabia.

Aim: To analyse the prevalence of self-care practices in T2D patients in KSA.
Methods: The study was conducted in King Fahad Medical City (KFMC) in Saudi Arabia, and 385 patients were selected as samples. Data were collected using the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities-Arabic (SDSCA) and consisted of 14 items related to self-care activities of T2D patients related to management and control of disease and four other aspects related to education and advice from healthcare members regarding management of T2D.
Results: The self-care attributes including adherence to medication commitment activities ( M = 6.13, SD = 1.25) were the most practised of all the domains. Glucose monitoring ( M = 4.15, SD = 2.42) and foot care ( M = 3.28, SD = 1.69) were at an average level, and adherence to the diet plan and exercise was found to be at a poor level ( M = 2.57, SD = 1.73 and M = 2.13, SD = 2.00) respectively. About 179 patients (74.3%) were found to be advised to follow a low-fat eating plan, and only 89 patients (36.9%) had received information concerning fruits and vegetables in their diet. More than 90% patients were found to be advised to strictly carry out exercise and blood sugar monitoring.
Conclusion: It was found that adherence to self-care activities including diet, exercise, and foot care was relatively poor while intake of medication was strictly followed. The education provided by healthcare providers related to self-management attributes was found to be significant and had positive effects on the overall health and well-being of T2D patients.
Competing Interests: We declare that we have no competing interests in this project.
(Copyright © 2020 Ali Hassan Alhaiti et al.)