J Educ Res Nurs. 2024; 21(4): 303-312 | DOI: 10.14744/jern.2024.01033

The Impact of Diabetes Obstacles on Disease Acceptance and Quality of Life in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Descriptive Study

Adile Neşe¹, Ercan Bakır², Sümeyra Mihrap İlter^3
1Department of Nursing, Gaziantep University, Vocational School of Health Services, Gaziantep, Türkiye
²Department of Nursing, Adıyaman University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Adıyaman, Türkiye
³Department of Gerontology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Osmaniye Korkut Ata University, Osmaniye, Türkiye

Background: Obstacles faced by patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus are significant for their acceptance of the disease and their quality of life.

Aim: This study examined the effects of diabetes obstacles on disease acceptance and quality of life among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods: Data for this descriptive study were collected from 150 patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus who attended the Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases outpatient clinics of a research and training hospital affiliated with a university in Türkiye and met the study criteria. The study was conducted from March 1 to June 15, 2022. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0, employing independent-sample t-tests, and one-way and two-way analyses of variance.

Results: The study found that 55.3% of participants were women, 66.7% were married, 28% had completed primary education, 55.3% were unemployed, and 50% had lived with type 2 diabetes mellitus for ten years or more. The total mean score on the Acceptance of Illness Scale was 23.93 ± 5.34, and the total mean score on the Diabetes Quality of Life Questionnaire was 2.59 ± 0.41. The mean score for the life change subscale on the Diabetes Obstacle Scale was 3.31 ± 9.54, indicating it was the most significant obstacle encountered by the patients.

Conclusion: The study found that the level of disease acceptance among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus is moderate, while their quality of life is low. Life change was identified as the most frequent obstacle affecting these patients.

Keywords: Diabetes obstacles, disease acceptance, quality of life, type 2 diabetes

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