Self-care practices of diabetes patients among three ethnics in Malaysia: Malay, Chinese and Indian / Siti Khuzaimah Ahmad Sharoni … [et al.]

There are areas of discrepancy related to the effectiveness of self-care practices in improving diabetes management especially when it involved a socio-cultural background of patients or their living situations. Aim: This study aim to determine the level of diabetes knowledge and self-care practices of diabetes patients among Malay, Chinese and Indian ethnic. Method: This study was a cross-sectional study that conducted in diabetic clinic, hospital Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to diabetic patients from December 2011 to February 2012. Results: 212 respondents involved part in this study with 75 Malay, 72 Chinese and 65 Indian. Based on the result, there was significantly different on level of diabetes knowledge assessment among three ethnics (F= 39.07, p0.05) and medication intake (F=45.33, p>0.05) between three ethnics. Conclusion: In this study, there was significantly different on self-care practices among three ethnics except for diet and medication intake. It can be concluded that individualized nursing interventions should be trained for high risk diabetic patients based on their customs and background to improve physical outcome.