Quality of Life among Diabetic Patients in the Primary Care Unit at Phramongkutklao Hospital

Abstract

Background and objectives:  Diabetes is a chronic non-communicable disease that is a major public health problem worldwide. In addition to being the leading cause of death for the world's population, it also causes social and economic problems. Diabetes affects physical health and results in psychological, family, and societal problems, including quality of life. This study aimed to study the level of quality of life and related factors in diabetic patients in the primary care unit of Phramongkutklao Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand

Material and methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study. The sample population was 120 type 2 diabetic cases above 20 years of age attending the primary care unit at Phramongkutklao Hospital from 1st of June - 30th of September 2021. The instruments were used as the following: 1) questionnaire for demographic data 2) questionnaire for physical health and health behaviors 3) quality of life indicators of the World Health Organization abbreviation Thai version (WHOQOL – BREF – THAI) to assess the quality of life. Descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression statistics were used for the analysis.

Result: This study included 120 eligible diabetics patients. The mean age was 58 years old, and 50.8% were women. The results showed that 50% of the subjects had a good quality of life. The multiple logistic regression method results showed that exercise 3 days or more per week was statistically significantly associated with good quality of life. (p-value < 0.001)

Conclusion: It was found that 60 in 120 diabetic patients in the primary care unit of Phramongkutklao Hospital had a good quality of life. Exercise 3 days or more per week improved the overall quality of life of diabetic patients.