Diabetes has become a worldwide concern especially among people termed as elderly
The USA is not an exception here, and in fact, the problem is more common there compared to other developed countries. Medical and nursing researchers as well as nutritionists' urges that obesity and sedentary life are the leading causes of diabetes (Shi et al., 2013). The rationale behind their argument is that most individuals who are obese do not conduct physical activities that help to burn excess calories in the body. Other mentioned attributes of diabetes were the genetic inheritance of the problem where the patient body is unable to produce sufficient insulin to regulate body sugars, or the body has developed resistance towards insulin. Over the years, diabetes has evolved to become a typical chronic disease and difficult to manage. This has led to countries such as the US to come up with strategies to fund chronic illness among the elderly and disabled. Consequently, the number of in and outpatients has raised especially among people with diabetes in healthcare facilities. Majority visit the hospitals to be checked for the level of blood sugars and others to be treated for diabetes. Nurses should intervene for the patients concerning the clinical manifestations as well as the level of blood sugars.
Research problem
In the year 2014, the number of elderly (65 years and above) with diabetes in Canada was 967,048. In the Canada literature, the factors that predispose the community to diabetes include sedentary life (Caspersen et al., 2012), excessive consumption of calories (Jeon et al., 2013), genetic factors (Seaquist et al., 2013), lack of physical exercises (Seligman et al., 2012), and obesity (Yaffe et al., 2012). Despite this growing body of proof, some studies focus on individuals' efforts to avoid development of diabetes. Such knowledge can be of great importance to the general population such that it provides hope that this health condition can be prevented. Little is known about the activities that some individuals are applying to help prevent diabetes.
Identification
Research purpose
This study aims at comparing the efficacy of community support in long-term care for older adults with diabetes. The research focuses on both the formal and informal support provided by close family members, relatives, and the entire society. Then, the outcome is compared to the regular hospital treatment approach.
Research questions
What is the major clinical manifestation of diabetes?
How many types of diabetes are there? And which one (s) are common among the elderly?
What are the leading causes of diabetes?
What are the risk factors for diabetes?
What are the treatment modalities of diabetes?
What is the nursing intervention for an elderly patient presenting with diabetes?
What is the relationship between high blood sugar levels and the elderly?
How do obesity and lack of physical activities contribute the development of diabetes?
What is the relationship between nurses' negative and positive attitudes toward older people with diabetes?
Why is an increase in formal community support associated with improved management of diabetes among the elderly?
Why is sedentary life associated with increased levels of diabetes among the old population?
Relevancy
Diabetes among the elderly and the formal community support to diabetic patients is addressing one of the trending issues in nursing practice because currently, nurses have decided to stabilize patients then discharge them for continued care at their homes. This is to ensure the patient is receiving care at the comfort of their residences. Community members including relatives are more vibrant currently to fight against diabetes and its predisposing factors, and therefore they can be trusted with the continued care of the patient. To some extent, this discovery has added value to nursing practice since all that is needed is to teach the patient, relative or caregiver of the client how to subcutaneously inject insulin and other relevant details such as amount, time and precautions to be taken.
The purpose statement articulates clearly with the proposed study such that the research will have minimal or no challenges in determining the appropriate sources of information. The research questions provide directions or the significant concerns to be addressed in the study such that it will logically flow.
Reference
Shi, L., Shu, X. O., Li, H., Cai, H., Liu, Q., Zheng, W., ... & Villegas, R. (2013). Physical activity, smoking, and alcohol consumption in association with incidence of type 2 diabetes among middle-aged and elderly Chinese men. PloS one, 8(11), e77919.
Yaffe, K., Falvey, C., Hamilton, N., Schwartz, A. V., Simonsick, E. M., Satterfield, S., ... & Harris, T. B. (2012). Diabetes, glucose control, and 9-year cognitive decline among older adults without dementia. Archives of neurology, 69(9), 1170-1175.
Caspersen, C. J., Thomas, G. D., Boseman, L. A., Beckles, G. L., & Albright, A. L. (2012). Aging, diabetes, and the public health system in the United States. American journal of public health, 102(8), 1482-1497.
Jeon, J. Y., Ko, S. H., Kwon, H. S., Kim, N. H., Kim, J. H., Kim, C. S., ... & Jang, M. J. (2013). Prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes according to fasting plasma glucose and HbA1c. Diabetes & metabolism journal, 37(5), 349-357.
Seaquist, E. R., Anderson, J., Childs, B., Cryer, P., Dagogo-Jack, S., Fish, L., ... & Vigersky, R. (2013). Hypoglycemia and diabetes: a report of a workgroup of the American Diabetes Association and the Endocrine Society. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 98(5), 1845-1859.
Seligman, H. K., Jacobs, E. A., López, A., Tschann, J., & Fernandez, A. (2012). Food insecurity and glycemic control among low-income patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes care, 35(2), 233-238.
