Research Problem
Diabetes has been one of the highly researched topics in the medical field. As a result of diabetes, it leads to hypoglycaemia which is as a result of the blood glucose falling to around 50/60 mg/dl. The nursing practice is therefore experiencing problems especially when it comes to the diagnosis and treatment of diabetic patients. As the medical field tends to be impacted by the changing technology, the big issue remains on the measures that can efficiently be used to keep the number of diabetic patients down. Diabetes is a condition that is affecting the larger population in the United States, hence being the primary concern to use evidence and personalizing the treatment options. The research problem is assessing the effectiveness of structured teaching programme on the knowledge regarding the prevention of hypoglycaemia among the patients who are suffering from diabetes in the outpatient department of the selected hospitals in the United States.
Need for the Study
There are some circumstances where individuals have diabetes. As a result, it results in the falling of the blood glucose level below average, which is as a result of hypoglycaemia. It becomes essential also to note the causes of hypoglycaemia. The fall in glucose level in the blood is as a result of overproduction of insulin where the pancreatic islets are secreted to produce a lot of insulin hormone. This will impact on the metabolic functions, leading to the production of glucose that is not secreted in the blood through urine, resulting in diabetes. Another cause may be over-exercising or engaging in a physical activity that results in much straining.
The need for this study has mainly been factored with the increase in the number of diabetic patients in contemporary society. This means that a lot needs to be done to counter such increasing numbers of patients. It is believed that hypoglycaemia has been common since the early 1980s to 2002, which led to approximately 1465 patients who were suffering from hypoglycaemia having at least an episode. Among the total population of the identified community, the most significant population was composed of the elderly while the rest were young people.
Hypoglycaemia is a serious condition, especially to older adults, and this has made it difficult for them to survive. This is associated with the high amount of capital that they are required to spend on healthcare services. Consequently, a larger percentage of the adults do not have enough money, and lack of adequate treatment programme has subjected them to spend a lot of cash. This has increased the dependency ratio as they look upon other family members for support. This research is therefore devoted to address the issue and raise concern to the relevant authorities so that they can establish measures to help such population get access to quality healthcare. Also, it will inform the nursing practitioners to base on the available evidence so that they can be in a position to deal with the patients and address the problems that are affecting them.
The information obtained from National Urban Diabetes Survey (NUDS) which was conducted according to the criteria set by WHO, it indicated that the diabetes is a condition that will continue rising overtime at becoming a major global health issue. This brings to the attention to divert the required resources so that the problem is addressed with the watch. Diabetes is likely to cause health burdens if it is not discussed with the immediate effect.
Looking at the individual awareness about diabetes, it is clear that most of the people are not yet aware of what hypoglycaemia exactly is. When asking most of the people questions regarding hypoglycaemia, it is clear that individuals can identify the symptoms they face but cannot determine what kind of disease they are suffering from. In this essence, it is good to create awareness about the disease. It is therefore essential to improve the knowledge to make sure that diabetic patients know what they are supposed to do to enhance healthy living. The primary aim is to establish a teaching programme on knowledge prevention of hypoglycaemia among the patients who are suffering from diabetes.
Current Evidence on the Topic
In some circumstances, individuals often experience sudden changes in the glucose level in the bodies where it falls below the expected condition, resulting in episodes of hypoglycaemia. At this time, the action of insulin hormone would have reached its peak level, mainly when a person has engaged in a more straining activity or stayed for a long time without having taken any meal. According to the research conducted by Ng et al., (2019), they concluded that the fear of hypoglycaemia is a well-known phenomenon. This was done by measuring anxiety through an extraordinary scale called the Hypoglycaemia Fear Survey. Various factors were associated with fear, for example, the biological factors which were associated with hypoglycaemia history, the time that a patient took in the insulin treatment and the higher blood glucose level in the blood of an individual.
Thomas et al. did another study., (2019) among the 60 participants was aiming to finding out and improving the knowledge regarding hypoglycaemia and its management among diabetic patients. In the study design, the participants of the group were subjected into two groups, where at first they had not been taught about hypoglycaemia. After prior knowledge, a post-test was then accrued out, which revealed that there was a significant increase in awareness. In this study, therefore, it was concluded that teaching individuals about hypoglycaemia would help to improve understanding hence reducing the cases of possible diabetic conditions.
A study conducted by Raju et al., (2016) about the incident rates of hypoglycaemia and the associated costs among the patients who have type 2 diabetes who have a second-line treatment with the ant diabetic agents and concluded that there was a low incidence rate. It is well-known that the treatment of diabetes is associated with higher medical costs, a factor that should be considered in more essential details. Hypoglycaemia is a condition which arises as a result of type 2 diabetes, and its treatment requires a lot of capital input. It became one of the economic burdens in the United States as most individuals seeking for treatment don’t have enough capital, there are no adequate medical facilities that are established to handle diabetes and also there is limited research for the same. On the other evidence-based practice is working to ensure that possible treatment for diabetes and hypoglycaemia is dealt with with the most significant concern.
Definitions of the Terms
Assessment
This is determining the level of knowledge that individuals who have diabetes have regarding hypoglycaemia treatment through an interview.
Effectiveness
This is how the teaching post-test teaching programme established to inform individuals about how they can prevent hypoglycaemia is and improving the knowledge of diabetic patients.
Post-test and Pre-test Teaching Programme
This is the step by test teaching programme that is developed to aid in teaching aids that are designed for the patients who are suffering from diabetes to give information regarding hypoglycaemia.
Prevention
This is a term that has been used to refer to those measures which are taken to prevent the onset of any particular disorder.
Hypoglycaemia
This is the condition which refers to the blood sugar level going below normal that is, in most cases, 50mg/dl in the blood of a diabetic patient.
Diabetic Patient
The term refers to an individual who has been diagnosed with diabetes and is undergoing a medical check-up.
The relevance of the research to gaps Discovered in the Available Evidence
This study research attempts to put in place measures that can help diabetic patients gain knowledge and understand how they can handle hypoglycaemia. It has been realized that most of the individuals have a fear of hypoglycaemia due to lack of knowledge. Giving them access to teaching programme is a significant milestone to understanding hypoglycaemia. Prior knowledge regarding the topic implies that people will know what to do to avoid the overproduction of insulin. The research base this information from the selected hospitals in the United States to help address the issue of diabetes. It will assist the government in finding possible measures to be employed in creating awareness.
Similarly, research tends to fill the gaps of already existing evidence by revealing that a teaching programme to enhance awareness is the first step to reduce fear and create awareness. Most of the diabetic patients suffer because they don’t have information on what they should do to be free from getting diabetes. This research is a remarkable milestone to enhanced evidence-based practice in the field of nursing research.