The Great Diabetic Debate: What Part Does The Physician Play in Patient’s Foot Care Knowledge?

Objectives: To assess the role of physician in the knowledge of diabetic footcare amongst diabetics. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on diabetics. A structured pre-tested questionnaire was administered during September-December 2015. The data was analyzed by SPSS 21. Percentages of the categorical variables were calculated and compared by cross tabulation and Chi square test at a 5% level of significance and their 95% Confidence Intervals were also calculated. Results: A total of 189 (females: 49%, males: 51%) diabetics, visiting Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences were included in the study. Their mean age was calculated to be53 years (SD 13.2). 94.7% of the respondents had type 2 diabetes and 36.5% had insulin dependent diabetes. The mean age at the time of diagnosis of diabetes in the respondents was observed to be 43 years (SD 12.07) whereas at an average of 9.4 years (SD 7.9) had passed since the diagnosis of diabetes amongst the respondents. Regarding foot care 61.9 % said that they were never examined by a physician or nurse while 62.4% of the patients responded that they have never received foot care guidelines from any physician and only 16.4% had received proper advice from their doctors. There is a positive correlation, r = 0.162 and a highly significant relationship (p = 0.026), between the patients who regularly examine their feet themselves and those who have been examined by their physician. Conclusion: This study reveals a dire need for an extensive educational program about primary foot care measures.