title: Health-care seeking behaviour and the use of traditional medicine among persons with type 2 diabetes in south-western Uganda: a study of focus group interviews.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Health-care seeking behaviour is important as it determines acceptance of health care and outcomes of chronic conditions but it has been investigated to a limited extent among persons with diabetes in developing countries. The aim of the study was to explore health-care seeking behaviour among persons with type 2 diabetes to understand reasons for using therapies offered by traditional healers.
  
  
  METHODS
  Descriptive study using focus-group interviews. Three purposive focus-groups were conducted in 2011 of 10 women and 7 men aged 39-72 years in Uganda. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and qualitatively analysed according to a method described for focus-groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Reasons for seeking help from traditional healers were symptoms related to diabetes such as polydipsia, fatigue and decreased sensitivity in lower limbs. Failure of effect from western medicine was also reported. Treatment was described to be unknown extracts, of locally made products taken as herbs or food, and participants had sought help from different health facilities with the help of relatives and friends.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The pattern of seeking care was inconsistent, with a switch between different health care providers under the influence of the popular and folk sectors. Despite beliefs in using different healthcare providers seeking complementary and alternative medicine, participants still experienced many physical health problems related to diabetes complications. Health professionals need to be aware of the risk of switches between different health care providers, and develop strategies to initiate health promotion interventions to include in the care actors of significance to the patient from the popular, folk and professional sectors, to maintain continuity of effective diabetes care.
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Caring Sciences, Linnaeus University, Växjö, Sweden ; Department of Nursing, Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), Mbarara, Uganda.
authors.forename: Fortunate
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Atwine
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Caring Sciences, Linnaeus University, Växjö, Sweden.
authors.forename: Sally
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hultsjö
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Caring Sciences, Linnaeus University, Växjö, Sweden.
authors.forename: Björn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Albin
authors.affiliation: Department of Social and Welfare Studies, University of Linköping, Campus Norrköping, Sweden.
authors.forename: Katarina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hjelm
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016488:Medicine, African Traditional; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D014454:Uganda
keywords: Complementary alternative medicine; Uganda; diabetes mellitus; health-care seeking behaviour; nursing; traditional healers