Investigation of Self-care Behaviors and the Related Factors in Older People with Diabetes Type 2 Visiting Tehran Selected Hospitals in 2016

Background and objective: Diabetes can affect physical performance, development of disease complications, mental status, and the perception of health. Therefore, one of the main ways of controlling diabetes is to maintain and improve self-care behaviors in these patients. As such, the objective of the present study was to investigate self-care behaviors and the related factors in older people with diabetes. Method: This is a descriptive correlational study done on 262 older people with diabetes who visited Tehran selected hospitals in 2016. Data collection was done using a demographic information questionnaire and Toobert's and Glasgow's self-care behaviors questionnaire. The descriptive and inferential statistics (Pearson correlation, one-way ANOVA, and independent t-test) in SPSS 20 software were used for data analysis. Findings: The average age of the older people was 65.78 (+/- 5.69). 152 people (58 percent) of the participants were female and the others were male. The average score of self-care in the study group was 44.74 (+/- 11.90) which is at an average level. The minimum score average of self-care behaviors was related to diet consideration 22.82 (+/- 7.59). There was a significant relationship between self-care behaviors and occupational status, type of treatment, and duration of diabetes. Conclusion: The self-care behaviors of the research units were at an average level. Regarding the important role of self-care activities in controlling diabetes, some educational programs should be planned in order to empower the patients with regard to self-care. This will benefit the health level of the patients with diabetes and facilitate control of the disease.