title: A CNS-managed diabetes foot-care clinic: a descriptive survey of characteristics and foot-care behaviors of the patient population.
abstract: Lower extremity lesions are the primary cause of hospitalization for people with diabetes, resulting in enormous personal and financial costs. This study used a survey designed to describe the characteristics and foot-care behaviors of people with diabetes who attended a clinical nurse specialist managed foot-care clinic. Forty-eight patients who received care at the participating foot-care clinic completed a 21-item multiple-choice questionnaire designed to determine the presence of foot pathology and foot-care behaviors. Most of the patients were between 65 and 74 years of age, had concurrent illnesses, and had four or more primary care visits per year. Although 69% had existing foot pathology, only 44% reported inspecting their feet daily and only 54% reported that their primary care provider examined their feet on each visit. Twenty-five percent reported going barefoot sometimes and eight percent would either treat a foot lesion themselves or wait for it to get better.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing at Clemson University, USA.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Willoughby
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Burroughs
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017719:Diabetic Foot / Q000451:nursing / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009720:Nurse Clinicians; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012648:Self Care