The Impact of Education on Public Stigma Related to Diabetes Among First-Semester Undergraduate Students at Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences

Diabetes-related stigma and its significant role in shaping a new identity for individuals with diabetes, as well as its impact on diabetes outcomes, highlight the importance of anti-stigma interventions. This study explores the effectiveness of an anti-stigma educational intervention in reducing diabetes-related stigma, drawing on qualitative evidence of the training's effectiveness.

In this semi-experimental study, 121 first-semester undergraduates from Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Data was collected using three questionnaires: demographic information, EMIC, and diabetes knowledge. The training consisted of three one-hour sessions. Subsequently, the first post-test was administered to both groups. A second post-test was conducted one month later at the same location. The data was entered into SPSS software version 24 and analyzed using descriptive statistics and a mixed model.

Before the intervention, the mean scores of knowledge and stigma were not different between the groups. Following the training, the mean knowledge score in the intervention group increased compared to the control group, while the mean stigma score decreased. Regarding diabetes knowledge, the significance level of the group effect and time effect (group) is less than 0.05, indicating a significant difference between the mean scores of diabetes knowledge in the intervention and control groups, with the intervention leading to increased diabetes knowledge. As for stigma, the significance level of the group effect is greater than 0.05, while the significance level of time (group) is less than 0.05. This suggests there is no significant difference between the mean stigma score in the control group and the intervention group, although the mean stigma score in groups varies over time. Ultimately, the intervention has resulted in a change in the stigma score.

The findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the educational intervention in reducing stigma and confirm that individuals with more knowledge are likely to attribute less stigma and discrimination to others. This low-cost, short-term method over consecutive periods can help decrease stigma.