Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Health Care Providers in the Philippine General Hospital towards In-Patient Hypoglycemia and its Management

Abstract

Objectives. To determine the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of health care providers at the Philippine General Hospital towards hypoglycemia among non-critically ill patients using a validated, self-administered survey tool.

Methods. This study covered two phases out of a three-phased project: (1) development and validation of a 43- item KAP survey tool and (2) assessment of KAP among nurses and residents using the tool. Phases 1 and 2 are analytic cross-sectional studies. Data for the KAP survey was collected using the developed tool and focused group discussions (FGDs). Results of this study will be the framework for Phase 3, which is the development of an in-patient hypoglycemia protocol.

Results. The validated KAP survey tool yielded a low overall mean score of 12.56 ± 2.11 in the knowledge domain although high scores (4.88 ± 1) were noted for knowledge on management of hypoglycemia. In terms of attitude, majority (99.31%) of respondents believed that fewer hypoglycemia events correlates to better clinical outcomes and are willing to adopt a nurse-driven protocol. Most respondents (52.8%) employed correct practices in hypoglycemia management. The FGDs identified the perceived facilitators and barriers to hypoglycemia management.

Conclusion. There is a gap in knowledge and practices in managing hypoglycemia among health care providers which needs to be addressed further with education and training. Nevertheless, health care providers have a positive attitude towards having a standard hypoglycemia protocol that will contribute greatly to its implementation in the clinical area.