Improvement of foot care knowledge and behaviors of diabetic patients

In the United States over 37 million people have diabetes. The condition damages blood vessels and tissues leading to peripheral neuropathy and impaired wound healing. The loss of protective sensation associated with diabetes can prevent patients from recognizing when they have a wound or some other kind of skin damage present. Delayed identification of wounds in a diabetic patient can have dangerous consequences, most notable amputation of the affected body part. In fact, diabetes is the strongest influence in non-traumatic lower extremity amputations. The purpose of this project was to increase patient knowledge of proper foot-care as well as improve foot self-care behaviors at home. The project team members sought to achieve this by implementing a standardized patient education program for diabetic patients in addition to performing a diabetic foot exam (DFE) with the patient in the primary care setting. The education sessions included verbal and written instruction that were developed using the American Diabetes Association (ADA) proper foot care guidelines. After the implementation of the project, scores on both the basic diabetes foot-care questionnaire and the diabetes foot self-care behavior scale (DFSBS) increased.