Abstract: World Journal of Diabetes Research and Practice

Abstract:
Background: Tanzania is experiencing one of Africa’s worst type 2 diabetes epidemics. In 2011, 2.8% of Tanza nians had diabetes; by 2021, this figure had risen to12.8%. Maintaining optimum glucose levels in diabetic pa tients requires proper self-care practices such as healthy eating, being active, taking medication, foot care, healthy coping, and monitoring blood sugar. Patient-mediated journaling means writing down self-care activities, which will enhance patient engagement in managing chronic diseases. This study is designed to assess the effect of a patient-mediated journaling intervention on improving self-care practices among type 2 diabetic mellitus patients attending diabetes clinics in Dodoma, Tanzania.

Methods and Findings: This facility-based, controlled quasi-experimental study pre- and post-test design was conducted among 147 type 2 diabetes mellitus patients randomly selected from current attendees at three selected health facilities in the Dodoma Region. The intervention group (n = 49) was exposed to patient-mediated journal ing over 8 weeks, and the control group (n = 98) continued with usual care over the same period. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 25. The change in mean of the self-care practice scores observed 2 months after the intervention, for the intervention group was 4.47±3.90, and for the control group 3.90±0.70. This means that the change in self-care practice from baseline to end line was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group.

Conclusion: This study showed that patient-mediated journaling interventions were feasible, and linked with sig nificant improvements in self-care practices among the intervention group participants as compared to the control group. Thus, implementation of patient-mediated journaling interventions initiated at health facilities can improve client-driven diabetes self-care management.