Knowledge of diabetes and hypertension care among health care workers in southwest Nigeria.
BACKGROUND
There has been a progressive increase in diabetes among Nigerians. A major problem with diabetes care in the sub-Saharan African region is the inadequate training of health care workers, leading to insufficient knowledge of diabetes and other chronic diseases.


OBJECTIVE
To assess health care workers' knowledge on various aspects of diabetes and hypertension management based on recommended guidelines.


METHODS
A questionnaire assessing knowledge of diabetes and hypertension care was administered among health care workers at the beginning of a workshop on diabetes education. The responses were analyzed using SPSS statistical software version 10.0.


RESULTS
A total of 184 subjects responded. One hundred four (56.5%) were male and 80 (43.5%) were female. Medical practitioners constituted 76 (41.8%) while nurses and other categories of health care workers constituted 46 (25.2%) and 60 (33%), respectively. Twenty-eight (26.9%) of these worked in primary health institutions, 46 (44.2%) in secondary health institutions, while 30 (28.9%) worked in tertiary health institutions. One hundred eighteen (64.1%) respondents gave a correct response of 5 to 6 mmol/L (90 - 108 mg/L) as the blood glucose target level for diabetic patients. Similarly, 118 (64.1%) respondents gave a correct response of < or = 130/85 mm Hg as the recommended target blood pressure for diabetic patients. The ideal serum cholesterol of 5.0 mmol/L and glycated hemoglobin were correctly indicated by 42 (22.8%) and 56 (30.4%) of the respondents, respectively. The majority of the subjects (89.1%) were aware of the fact that tight blood glucose control reduces the risk of diabetes-related complications. The variables that correlated with increased knowledge include treating more than 50 patients per month (X2 4.124, P = 0.042) and working in a tertiary center (X2 5.714, P = 0.047). Most of the health care facilities (61.7%) where the respondents work do not deliver protocol-driven care for diabetics.


CONCLUSIONS
A large number of health care workers in southwest Nigeria do not seem to be familiar with the current practice guidelines for the management of diabetes. There is a need to introduce protocol-driven diabetes care in our health care facilities and improve the knowledge base of practitioners.
D000328:Adult; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000145:classification* / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009549:Nigeria / Q000453:epidemiology; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards*; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult