Perception about insulin therapy among diabetic patients attending outpatient department of a tertiary care hospital in Darjeeling, West Bengal

Abstract

Background: Initiation of insulin therapy in diabetic patients is commonly met with resistance. The study was carried out to explore the willingness and perception of insulin therapy among diabetic individuals. Materials & methods: It was a hospital based, descriptive study, conducted among 273 insulin naïve diabetic patients who attended the outpatient department of medicine in a tertiary care hospital of Darjeeling. Individuals who have previously used insulin were excluded. Pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Results: This study shows a high level of insulin therapy refusal (67.77%) in the study population. Majority of the participants expressed the refusal because of fear of injection, worsening of diabetes, complications, side effects, problems in lifestyle adaptations, difficult to fulfil responsibilities at work, discouragement from the others etc. Conclusion: The high proportion of insulin refusal could be averted by increasing awareness and sensitizing patient about insulin therapy.