Nutritional intake and modification of lifestyle are the cornerstones for management of
Type 2 diabetes. It has been recognized that, in order to achieve satisfactory metabolic
control, adoption of self-care skills by the diabetic person is crucial. The aim of this study
was to determine self-care practices and diabetes related emotional distress for people with
Type 2 diabetes mellitus in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. A cross sectional survey involving
121 people with Types 2 diabetes was conducted in four diabetic clinics located in Dar es
Salaam. Both descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were carried out using
Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 11.5). Result of the study showed that, the
level of self-care practices in area of diet, physical exercises, medication, and blood
glucose test was not up to desired level of practice requiring following of all of the
recommendations in seven days per week without missing. Diabetic related emotion
distress for studied sample was low and comparable to levels reported in other studies
however the level was not in line with the score recommended in PAID. The
recommended PAID score for emotion is zero. For this reason, efforts are needed to
reduce the emotional stress among diabetic subjects. The main problem in self-care was
financial limitation and lack of care education. Efforts are therefore required to improve
the quality of care including self-care education, counselling and medical support.
Following the result of this study it is recommended that, the government and other
stakeholders should increase effort to lower the cost of diabetic services like diabetic tests
and medications; Given the importance of self monitoring of blood glucose to diabetes
care, government, and other stakeholders should strive to make the procedure readily
accessible and affordable for all patients who require; Further research is needed to
determine optimum self-care practices and diabetic related emotional distress levels that
can predict good glycemic control that would help researcher and programme managers to
be able to monitor the progress of diabetic care programs.
The Muhimbili University College of Health Sciences (MUCHS)