DOC News October 1, 2004
Volume 1 Number 2 p. 21
© 2004 American Diabetes Association
DAWN Study Findings Can Improve Patient Care
Laura Gater
At the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE) annual meeting,
researchers discussed how the Diabetes Attitudes, Wishes and Needs (DAWN)
study may lead to improvements in care for patients with diabetes. In the
largest global psychosocial study ever undertaken, 5,000 patients and 4,000
health care providers in 13 countries were interviewed.
DAWN's researchers assessed perceptions of diabetes care among people with
diabetes and health care professionals. The findings of the study indicate
that poor self-care is common and can be attributed partly to psychosocial
barriers.
"The study identifies psychological factors as a key to diabetes
outcomes," said Mark Peyrot, PhD, director of the Center for Social and
Community Research, Loyola College, Baltimore. "Quality of life is an
important outcome, and psychological factors impact other outcomes, such as
self-care."
Emotional problems, diabetes-specific stresses, and poor health care
delivery all contribute to patient distress, according to the study. The
health care professionals surveyed indicated that they need help dealing with
patients' psychological problems.
More information can be found at
www.dawnstudy.com.
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