Assessment of perceived self-efficacy and its relation with metabolic control in diabetic patients in Qom in 2017

Metabolic control is a collection of tests and studies related to diabetes performed on a daily basis for 2 to 3 months. Self-efficacy means the belief of an individual in him/herself to successfully perform a particular behavior and expect the associated results. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between metabolic control and self-efficacy in diabetic patients in Qom, Iran.

This cross-sectional study was conducted on a total 325 patients with type II diabetes who referred to Diabetic Community in Qom through simple random sampling. Demographic information and standard self-efficacy in diabetic management questionnaires were used in this study. Fasting blood sugar (FBS) and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) data sheet was used based on the last 3-month test results. Finally, the data were analyzed by SPSS software (version 20) using descriptive indices and analytical tests.

The obtained results of this study showed that there was a significant reverse correlation between the mean score of self-efficacy with the mean scores of FBS and HbA1c. There was also a significant difference in self-efficacy scores in terms of gender (P<0.05). According to the results, self-efficacy showed predictive power of FBS and HbA1C reported as 22% and 18%, respectively.

The obtained results of this study showed that self-efficacy was at a moderate level among the patients. The levels of FBS and HbA1c did not indicate the optimal control of diabetes. It should be noted that there was a significant reverse correlation between self-efficacy with FBS and HbA1c, indicating that FBS and HbA1c levels decrease with the increase of self-efficacy score.