Family member's involvement in diabetes education and care is associated with better patient outcomes: Experience from the North West Region, Cameroon

Nfor Claudette Manli and Wirng

Abstract

Introduction: Family support has been associated with improved patient’s outcomes in adults with diabetes, but to date most family-based interventions have focused on children and adolescents with diabetes at the expense of adults. Purpose: We set out to assess the impact of family support in care of adults with diabetes on patient’s outcomes in order to tailor local interventions for diabetic care in the North West region of Cameroon. Methodology: We carried out a one-year prospective study with 168 adult type 2 diabetes clients in 3 district hospitals in the NWR of Cameroon. A total of 104 families were recruited through the clients. Families took part in education sessions on Diabetes and self-care interventions. Patient’s medical records, questionnaires and interviews were used to gather the data. Results: There was an increase in the proportion of patients with HbA1c < 7% from 12% to 70% in among patients with family support as opposed to a smaller increase (11% to 38%) among patients without family involvement. Comparatively, the risk of poor patient outcomes in patients without family involvement was twice that of patients with family involvement. Conclusion: Family support has a positive impact on diabetes patient’s outcomes in terms of Diabetes knowledge and better glycaemic control. Recommendation Diabetes clinics in all health institutions managing diabetes should be encouraged to involve family members in diabetes self-management.