Knowledge on self-management of diabetic patients among their relatives in a selected diabetes center in Dhaka Bangladesh

Abstract

Mobile technology represents an innovative approach to communicating with patients about diabetes education. However, no studies have investigated the effectiveness of mobile Short Message Service (SMS) in enhancing knowledge and beliefs about diabetes among the family members of patients. Therefore, the present study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of SMS in strengthening diabetes-related beliefs among relatives. This cross-sectional study involved 325 participants, with 188 in the SMS Group and 137 in the Non-SMS Group, all attending the outpatient department of a selected tertiary care diabetes center. Participants were selected purposefully. During the baseline visit, each participant's knowledge regarding diabetes was assessed using a pre-designed questionnaire. Following this, both groups received an educational session delivered on a one-to-one basis by a trained diabetes educator. An educational intervention focusing on a healthy lifestyle was delivered through SMS to the Non-SMS Group. The SMS Group received two messages per day for two months. At the end of the study, both groups completed the same questionnaire for data collection. Statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.0. The mean age of participants' relatives was 34.58 ± 11.91 years in the SMS group and 31.02 ± 11.51 years in the Non-SMS group, respectively. No significant differences in belief levels between the two groups were noted at baseline. However, following the SMS intervention, the SMS group showed a significantly higher level of knowledge (p≤ 0.0001), while the Non-SMS group exhibited only a slight increase in knowledge (p≤ 0.0001). These results suggest that mobile phone messaging is an innovative and effective tool for improving beliefs and reducing misconceptions about diabetes mellitus among relatives. Further large-scale studies are needed to validate these findings.