Table 3.
Attitude of type 2 diabetes patients attending primary healthcare centers in Al-Ahsa, towards insulin use
| Items | Unwilling N (%) | Undecided N (%) | Willing N (%) | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negative attitudes toward insulin | ||||
| Insulin may cause more diabetic complications in the long term | 46 (44.6) | 12 (11.6) | 45 (43.6) | 0.001 |
| I will feel that my diabetes has become worse if I start to use insulin | 74 (45.1) | 16 (9.7) | 74 (45.1) | 0.0001 |
| It would be better to delay insulin until there was no alternative | 101 (38.4) | 23 (8.7) | 139 (52.8) | 0.001 |
| Using insulin, means I failed to properly care for my diabetes | 82 (38.6) | 19 (8.9) | 111 (52.3) | 0.02 |
| Lifestyle restrictions and adaptations | ||||
| Insulin would make my life difficult, such as in traveling or eating out | 77 (44.5) | 19 (10.9) | 77 (44.5) | 0.0001 |
| I just don’t have enough time for regular doses of insulin | 58 (51.7) | 15 (13.3) | 39 (34.8) | 0.0001 |
| I can’t pay as close attention to my diet as insulin treatment requires | 54 (50.4) | 12 (11.2) | 41 (38.3) | 0.0001 |
| injection rejection concerns | ||||
| I am afraid of needle injections | 43 (43.8) | 12 (12.2) | 43 (43.8) | 0.0001 |
| I will not be able to use the proper injecting technique | 56 (50.0) | 11 (9.8) | 45 (40.1) | 0.0001 |
| Injections in front of people would be embarrassing for me | 64 (44.1) | 11 (7.5) | 70 (48.2) | 0.0001 |
| Regular injections would give me a feeling of dependence | 58 (54.2) | 10 (9.3) | 39 (36.4) | 0.0001 |
| Fear of side effects | ||||
| Insulin can lead to serious problems with low blood sugar | 72 (36.9) | 17 (8.7) | 106 (54.0) | 0.059 |
| Insulin is likely to increase my weight | 62 (37.8) | 17 (10.3) | 85 (51.8) | 0.068 |
| Social influences and stigma | ||||
| People will think that I am sicker if I use insulin | 67 (48.9) | 10 (7.2) | 60 (43.7) | 0.0001 |
| I don’t want to start insulin because I heard some people had a bad experience with insulin | 54 (59.3) | 11 (12.0) | 26 (28.5) | 0.0001 |
| Positive attitudes toward insulin | ||||
| Insulin will allow me to have a less restrictive diet | 30 (29.1) | 7 (6.7) | 66 (64.0) | 0.009 |
| Insulin would help my diabetes to improve | 53 (23.0) | 15 (6.5) | 162 (70.4) | 0.0001 |
| Insulin can reliably prevent long term complications due to diabetes | 65 (25.3) | 19 (7.4) | 172 (67.1) | 0.0001 |