Özet:

OBJECTIVE: The research was conducted to evaluate the self-care agency and perceived social support in patients with diabetes mellitus. MATERIALS and METHODS: The population of this descriptive study consisted of patients with type 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus who received treatment in the Internal Diseases Clinic in Block B of Erzincan Devlet Hastanesi between September 2008 and March 2009, and the sample included 103 diabetic patients who volunteered to participate in the study and who were able to communicate. Data were collected by face to face interview technique, using a questionnaire, the Self-care Agency Scale (SCAS) and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Percentage, Kruskal-Wallis test, Mann Whitney-U test, t-test and Correlation Analysis were used in data analyses. RESULTS: SCAS score average and MSPSS total score average of diabetes patients were determined as 82.84±19.75 and 45.34±9.93, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between the patients' economic status and self-care agency score averages, their status of having their blood sugar checked and the friends subscale score average of the social support scale, diabetes type and the family subscale score average. Furthermore, as a result of the correlation between the total score averages of SCAS and MSPSS's subscale of perceived social support from friends, it was determined that self-care agency score averages increased significantly with the increase in perceived social support from friends. CONCLUSION: Taking the individual characteristics of diabetes patients into consideration, these patients should be informed about social support and self-care agency behaviours in order to facilitate their adaptation to social and psychological changes.

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