The multinational second Diabetes, Attitudes, Wishes and Needs study: results of the French survey

Abstract

Gérard Reach,1,2 Silla M Consoli,3,4 Serge Halimi,5 Claude Colas,6 Martine Duclos,7–9 Pierre Fontaine,10 Caroline Martineau,11 Carole Avril,12 Catherine Tourette-Turgis,13 Sylvie Pucheu,4 Olivier Brunet14 1Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases, Avicenne Hospital, Bobigny, 2EA 3412, CRNH-IDF, Paris 13 University, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Bobigny, 3Paris Descartes University, Paris Sorbonne Cité, Faculty of Medicine, Paris, 4University Service of Adult and Elderly Psychiatry, European Georges-Pompidou Hospital, Paris, 5Department of Diabetology, Endocrinology and Nutrition, Joseph Fourier University and CHU Grenoble, Grenoble, 6Department of Diabetology, Hôtel-Dieu Hospital, Paris, 7Department of Sport Medicine and Functional Explorations, Montpied Hospital, Clermont-Ferrand, 8Department of Human Nutrition, Centre de Recherche en Nutrition Humaine, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Clermont-Ferrand, 9Department of Human Nutrition, University of Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand, 10Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases, Huriez Hospital, Lille 2 University, Lille, 11Department of Dietetics, Larrey Hospital, CHU Toulouse, 12French Diabetics Federation, Paris, 13UPMC-Sorbonne Universités, Paris, 14General practitioner, Seraincourt, France Aim: The second Diabetes, Attitudes, Wishes and Needs (DAWN2™) multinational cross-sectional study was aimed at generating insights to facilitate innovative efforts by people with diabetes (PWD), family members (FMs), and health care professionals (HCPs) to improve self-management and psychosocial support in diabetes. Here, the French data from the DAWN2™ study are described.Methods: In France, 500 PWD (80 with type 1 diabetes [T1] and 420 with type 2 diabetes [T2]), 120 FMs, and 288 HCPs were recruited. The questionnaires assessed the impact of diabetes on quality of life and mood, self-management, attitudes/beliefs, and care/support.Results: Diabetes negatively impacted the emotional well-being of 59% of people with T1 versus 45% of people with T2 (P<0.05) and about half of FMs. A high level of distress was felt by about half of PWD and FMs. About half of HCPs reported assessing depression in their patients. Sixty-two percent of FMs considered managing diabetes to be a burden. Hypoglycemia was a source of concern for 64% of people with T1 and 73% of FMs of insulin users. About two-thirds of non-insulin-medicated people with T2 agreed to start insulin if prescribed, while half of HCPs preferred to delay insulin initiation. A discrepancy between HCPs’ perceptions of their interactions with their patients and PWD’s recollection of these interactions with regard to patients’ personal needs and distress was also observed.Conclusion: While distress remains under-assessed by HCPs, the negative impact of diabetes on the lives of PWD and FMs clearly induces distress on both groups. These findings provide new understanding of barriers precluding optimal management of diabetes. Developing strategies to overcome these barriers is now warranted. Keywords: health care provision, household study, psychosocial, quality of life