Educate African Americans with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) on the importance of daily foot self-care to prevent the development of diabetic foot ulcers (DFU): a quality improvement project.

Abstract

Introduction: Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) are a preventable healthcare pandemic. DFUs, a preventable diabetic complication, account for 6% of the diabetic population. Therefore, it is very necessary to address this growing health crisis through educational awareness to attenuate this preventable illness. Lack of education on the importance of routine basic foot care is one of the major casualties of the development of DFU, which, if not addressed, expeditiously leads to preventable lower limb amputation (LLA). Researchers have shown that approximately 0.03%-1.5% of diabetic patients need LLA, a costly and preventable complication. Hence, lack of education on the importance of safe routine foot care, such as lack of basic diabetic foot self-care awareness, walking without proper foot protection, delayed foot care and inappropriate care can negatively augment the pathological changes and lead to severe complications such as DFU, LLA and foot deformity. Researchers have indicated that educating diabetic patients on the importance of safe daily foot self-care will help prevent the development or exacerbation of DFUs. Foot care education for diabetic patients is one of the single most important methods of preventing DFUs. Clinical intervention, in this case, educating African Americans (AAs) on the importance of daily foot self-care in clinical practice will help decrease and prevent the development of DFUs among AAs with type 2 diabetes.

Result: Pretest-posttest shows significant knowledge gain. Of the total volunteers screened, 20% had previous ulcers that healed successfully; however, they were not being followed up by a foot specialist. None of the screened volunteers had current or active foot ulcers. 60% of volunteers had diabetic neuropathy determined via monofilament test; these abnormalities were not previously detected. Many volunteers had more than one positive item; therefore, they met the requirement for referral to a diabetic foot specialist.