Measuring the Level of Participation and Autonomy among people with Type II diabetes, Rafsanjan, Iran (2016)

A disease impacts patients’ participation level in their individual and social life through impacting their physical and mental performance. Due to the increasing prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM), and the importance of patients’ participation and quality of life (QOL) and the determination of the most important aspects affected by the disease in the participation and Quality of Life of patients with type II DM in Rafsanjan, Iran, the present study was conducted.
In this cross-sectional study, 227 patients with type II DM were assessed. The data collection tool consisted of a 2-part questionnaire. The first part was a demographic characteristics checklist. The second part was the Persian version of the Impact on Participation and Autonomy (IPA-p) scale. The IPA-p scale was used to collect data on the subject's participation in their own life. Then, a trained individual completed the demographic checklist through interviews. Subsequently, the subjects were asked to complete the IPA-p scale.The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software. Statistical tests such as t-test and ANOVA were used to compare the obtained means.
The highest level of participation was observed in the age group of 30-49 years, and participation was higher in men, single individuals, and individuals with a good economic status.
The results of the present study suggested the presence of a statistically significant relationship between the participation of patients with type II DM and individual, social, economic factors. Thus, this disease causes a reduction in their participation in different life aspects, and therefore, causes a reduction in QOL. With the consideration of the long-term course of the disease, taking measures to improve individuals’ participation level seems necessary.