Social Support for Self-Care: Patient Strategies for Managing Diabetes and Hypertension in Rural Uganda.
Ann Glob Health
; 87(1): 86, 2021.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34458110
ABSTRACT
Background:
Low-income countries suffer a growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Self-care practices are crucial for successfully managing NCDs to prevent complications. However, little is known about how patients practice self-care in resource-limited settings.Objective:
We sought to understand self-care efforts and their facilitators among patients with diabetes and hypertension in rural Uganda.Methods:
Between April and June 2019, we conducted a cross-sectional qualitative study among adult patients from outpatient NCD clinics at three health facilities in Uganda. We conducted in-depth interviews exploring self-care practices for hypertension and/or diabetes and used content analysis to identify emergent themes.Results:
Nineteen patients participated. Patients said they preferred conventional medicines as their first resort, but often used traditional medicines to mitigate the impact of inconsistent access to prescribed medicines or as a supplement to those medicines. Patients adopted a wide range of vernacular practices to supplement treatment or replace unavailable diagnostic tests, such as tasting urine to gauge blood-sugar level. Finally, patients sought and received both instrumental and emotional support for self-care activities from networks of family and peers. Patients saw their children as their most reliable source of support facilitating self-care, especially as a source of money for medicines, transport and home necessities.Conclusion:
Patients valued conventional medicines but engaged in varied self-care practices. They depended upon networks of social support from family and peers to facilitate self-care. Interventions to improve self-care may be more effective if they improve access to prescribed medicines and engage or enhance patients' social support networks.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Autocuidado
/
Diabetes Mellitus
/
Hipertensão
Tipo de estudo:
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Adult
/
Child
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
País/Região como assunto:
Africa
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article