Patients' beliefs on the impediments to good diabetes control: a mixed methods study of patients in general practice.

BACKGROUND: Most people with diabetes are not attaining desirable levels of HbA1c (glycated haemoglobin), or of blood pressure and cholesterol, leaving them at risk of developing complications. AIM: To identify ways of improving diabetes control by gaining insight into patients' attitudes/beliefs. DESIGN AND
SETTING: Questionnaires were offered to patients attending for a diabetes review in the 24 GP practices of North East Hampshire and Farnham Clinical Commissioning Group.
METHOD: Infrequent attenders were contacted by post. Volunteers then participated in focus groups.
RESULTS: Self-reported medication adherence was good with 83% (98/118) of responders recording ≥9 on a 10-point scale. Patients generally accepted they 'needed' and 'could take' medication. A substantial minority reported 'not liking' taking tablets. Focus groups confirmed this and revealed a reluctance to change lifestyle, with medication reported as a way to evade it. A total of 68 out of 112 responders (60.7%) knew their HbA1c value. However, focus groups identified little understanding of HbA1c, with responders perceiving it as medical jargon. Phrases such as 'stuck-on-sugar' or 'sugarload' were suggested as being semantically easier to understand. The questionnaire revealed trust in clinicians. This was confirmed in focus groups but confounded by frequent reports of healthcare providers giving inadequate/incorrect advice.
CONCLUSION: Investment in lifestyle change is needed. Participants were reluctant to change and saw medication as a way of avoiding it. HbA1c needs to be better explained. Intuitive phrases such as 'stuck-on-sugar' or 'sugarload' could be adopted into common parlance. Inadequate/incorrect advice seems to be hampering diabetes management and there appears to be a need for more diabetes-trained clinicians. © British Journal of General Practice 2016.