Anxiety and depression in obese and normal-weight individuals with diabetes type 2: a gender perspective.

BACKGROUND: Obesity is a problem that is increasing worldwide, leading to an increased incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Depression is more common among individuals with diabetes, and they are more likely than non-diabetic individuals to experience emotional problems. People with both T2DM and obesity bear an additional emotional burden, which affects their quality of life. OBJECTIVES: To describe the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression in groups of obese and normal-weight individuals with T2DM who are undergoing primary care and to investigate possible differences between the groups and between genders. METHOD: Three hundred and thirty-nine patients with T2DM from nine primary-care centres participated in a cross-sectional study (n = 180 + 159). The response rate was 67%. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Beck Depression Inventory - second edition (BDI-II) were employed to estimate the patients' symptoms of depression and anxiety. RESULTS: An association between T2DM, obesity and depression was observed in both genders. More than one in three women and one in five men with T2DM and obesity exhibited symptoms of anxiety or depression. In the normal-weight group, the females presented more symptoms of anxiety than did their male counterparts. CONCLUSION: In primary healthcare, the fact that both obese men and women with T2DM are at increased risk of anxiety and depression is an important finding, which must be recognised and considered in the course of primary healthcare consultations. Meeting the unique needs of each individual requires an understanding of both laboratory data and the individual's emotional status.

Health care professionals meeting with individuals with Type 2 diabetes and obesity: Balancing coaching and caution.

The burden of diabetes and obesity is increasing worldwide, indicating a need to find the best standard for diabetes care. The aim of this study was to generate a theory grounded in empirical data derived from a deeper understanding of health care professionals' main concerns when they consult with individuals with diabetes and obesity and how they handle these concerns. Tape-recorded interviews were conducted with seven groups and three individual members of a diabetes team in an area of western Sweden. The grounded theory (GT) method was used to analyse the transcribed interviews. A core category, labelled Balancing coaching and caution and three categories (Coaching and supporting, Ambivalence and uncertainty, and Adjusting intentions) emerged. The core category and the three categories formed a substantive theory that explained and illuminated how health care professionals manage their main concern; their ambition to give professional individualised care; and find the right strategy for each individual with diabetes and obesity. The theory generated by this study can improve our understanding of how a lack of workable strategies limits caregivers' abilities to reach their goals. It also helps identify the factors that contribute to the complexity of meetings between caregivers and individuals with diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes: perceptions of quality of life and attitudes towards diabetes from a gender perspective.

OBJECTIVE: To compare obese and normal-weight people with type 2 diabetes (T2DM), with a focus on their attitudes towards the disease, quality of life (QoL) and treatment from a gender perspective. METHODS: Two hundred and eighty-seven people with T2DM participated in a cross-sectional study. Health-related quality of life (HRQL) data from the Medical Outcomes Short Form Study 36 (SF 36), Well-Being Questionnaire (W-BQ12), Diabetes Attitude Scale (DAS) and Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire (DTSQs) were used. The results are presented descriptively. The Mann-Whitney U-test was conducted to examine differences between normal-weight and obese diabetics and between women and men. RESULTS: The results of this study show that there was a gender difference in the perception of QoL; obese females with diabetes experienced more limitations in daily life due to physical and emotional problems than obese males with diabetes. Obese men had reduced physical and vitality scores compared to normal-weight individuals. Compared to normal-weight females with diabetes, obese women had lower vitality scores, more body pain and more severe physical impacts. The negative emotional impact for obese females with diabetes was also demonstrated by the results of the W-BQ12 questionnaire. Obese females with diabetes felt that the disease was more overwhelming and difficult to handle in comparison to obese males with diabetes. There was no difference between the groups in terms of how they experienced treatment. CONCLUSION: There was a gender difference in the perceptions of QoL of people with T2DM. There was also a difference between the QoL of obese and normal-weight people with T2DM, as the obese may suffer from underlying depression. Further investigations are needed for health professionals to be able to meet the unique needs of each specific diabetic group.

Experiences of the encounter with the diabetes team-a comparison between obese and normal-weight type 2 diabetic patients.

OBJECTIVE: the aim of this study was to highlight and compare obese and normal-weight type 2 diabetic patients' perceptions and reported behaviors in terms of their care encounter with the diabetes team. METHODS: interviews were conducted with 28 diabetic patients. Qualitative content analysis was used as analysis method. RESULTS: the experiences revealed that when the care encounters took place from a health care perspective, there were no opportunities for individual support. For the obese diabetic patients, especially women, this gave rise to feelings of being stuck, defiance and shame, for those of normal weight, it created a sense of being left, despair and confusion. When encounters took place from the perspective of the individual, the diabetic patients need for support was fulfilled. For the obese diabetic patients this meant that the health care professionals recognised their needs and for those of normal weight, a feeling of security was created. CONCLUSIONS: the results demonstrate differences in the experiences of obese and normal-weight diabetic patients' men and women in terms of their encounters with the diabetes team. PRACTICE IMPLICATION: diabetic patients, especially the obese diabetic women, require tailor-made support provided by the health professionals in the diabetes team.

Working together--primary care doctors' and nurses' attitudes to collaboration.

BACKGROUND: Multidisciplinary teamwork is recommended for various disorders and it has been suggested that it is a way to meet the new challenges and demands facing general practitioners (GPs) in modern society. Attempts to introduce the method in primary care have failed partly due to GPs' unwillingness to participate. The aim of this study was to measure attitudes towards collaboration among GPs and district nurses (DN) and to investigate whether there is a correlation between a positive attitude toward collaboration and high self-esteem in the professional role. METHODS: The Jefferson Scale of Attitudes toward Physician Nurse Collaboration and the Professional Self-Description Form (PSDF) was used to study a cohort of 600 GPs and DNs in Västra Götaland region. The purpose was to map differences and correlations of attitude between DNs and GPs, between male and female GPs, and between older and younger DNs and GPs. RESULTS: Four hundred and one answers were received. DNs (mean 51.7) were significantly more positive about collaboration than GPs (mean 49.4). There was no difference between younger and older, male and female GPs. DNs scored higher on the PSDF-scale than GPs. CONCLUSIONS: DNs were slightly more positive about collaboration than GPs. A positive attitude towards collaboration did not seem to be a part of the GPs' professional role to the same extent as it is for DNs. Professional norms seem to have more influence on attitudes than do gender roles. DNs seem more confident in their profession than GPs.

Two sides of the coin - general practitioners' experience of working in multidisciplinary teams.

Multidisciplinary teamwork, defined as the collaboration between different professional groups to achieve a common purpose, is commonly regarded as a means to meet the complex tasks that medicine has to deal with today. However, many attempts to introduce the method in primary care have failed and this is supposed to be partly due to the fact that general practitioners (GPs) did not participate in the implementation of the method. The aim of this investigation was to get a deeper understanding of their attitude to teamwork by interviewing nine GPs at four Swedish health care centres, where successful teamwork had been ongoing since 1997. Themes and categories in the interviews were identified according to content analysis. Although the attitude in general was in favour of teamwork, four major themes: time-consuming versus time-saving; shared responsibility versus main responsibility; medical expert versus generalist; shared knowledge versus all knowing, could be identified, which all revealed ambivalence towards teamwork among the interviewees. It was concluded that, if teamwork is to be successfully introduced into primary care, the GPs' self-perception has to be taken into consideration as has the prestige and status associated with their traditional role and the benefits of teamwork to the profession of medicine. Apart from time, teamwork requires, professional supervision and doctors need to be trained in this method as early as in medical school.