Effect of a Self-Management Program on Uncontrolled Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus among Orchardists in Pak Chong District, Nakhon Ratchasima Province

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study with a two-group pretest–posttest design aimed to examine the effects of a self-management program among fruit orchard farmers with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes. The sample consisted of 60 individuals with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes who worked as fruit farmers in Pak Chong District, Nakhon Ratchasima Province. They were divided into an experimental group, comprising 30 farmers from Klang Dong Subdistrict, and a control group, comprising 30 farmers from Nong Nam Subdistrict. Participants were selected using simple random sampling. The research instruments included: 1) an eight-week self-management program, 2) a general information questionnaire, 3) a self-management behavior questionnaire, and 4) a blood glucose record form. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze general information, and differences in mean scores of self-management behaviors and blood glucose levels between the experimental and control groups before and after the intervention were analyzed using the Independent t-test or the Mann–Whitney U test for non-normally distributed data. Differences within each group before and after the intervention were analyzed using the Paired t-test or the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test when data were not normally distributed.

The results revealed that 1) after participating in the program, the experimental group had significantly higher mean self-management behavior scores than before the intervention and higher than those of the control group at the 0.05 significance level, and 2) after the program, the experimental group had significantly lower mean blood glucose levels compared to before the intervention and lower than those of the control group at the 0.05 significance level. These findings indicate that the self-management program for individuals with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes effectively improved self-management behaviors and reduced blood glucose levels. Therefore, public health agencies may adopt and implement this program in other communities with individuals who have uncontrolled type 2 diabetes to enhance diabetes management and reduce the overall health burden at the community level.