Barriers To Self-Care Behaviors Among Type 2 Diabetes Patients Residing in Rural and Urban Field Practice Areas of Belagavi, India

Background: Various studies show that carrying out self-care behaviors has many barriers making overall diabetes self-management difficult. This study analyzed the barriers to self-care behaviors in rural and urban population, which can be used for planning targeted community-based interventions. Methodology: This community based cross-sectional study was carried out between September 2022 and December 2023 among 346 diabetes patients residing in rural and urban field practice areas of Belagavi using a validated questionnaire. Collected data was entered using Microsoft Excel and analyzed in SPSS software. Results: The mean and standard deviation of the age of the participants was 60.24 ± 12.77 and 55.76 ± 12.72 years in rural and urban area, respectively. Out of 346 participants, 69.9% were females, 84.1% were Hindu, 28.6% had completed primary school, 52.6% were homemaker, 85.5% were married, and 32.9% belonged to Class III socio-economic class. The mean and standard deviation of the total barrier score was 120.32 ± 51.143 and 125.64 ± 48.893 for rural and urban, respectively. The maximum barrier score was for blood glucose monitoring barrier. The Spearman’s correlation coefficient of (-0.386) with p<0.001*** was found out between total barrier scores and self-care behavior scores which indicates negative correlation between total barrier score and self-care levels. Conclusion: Barriers to self-care behaviors is high in both rural and urban areas. Target-specific counseling and follow-up are needed to remove these barriers, and to have an effective practicing of self-care behaviors.