Positive Health Aspects Influencing Health Management Skills: A Study on Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients

Abstract

At present, various health-related problems in India are on the rise. Early occurrence of several diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, obesity etc., is indicative of increased stress and strains in everyday life. Sustaining positive mental health in the midst of life’s difficulties and challenges has become essential for optimal functioning. An efficient management strategy after the diagnosis of a health problem is of enormous significance. Type 2 diabetes mellitus, as a lifestyle disease, has dramatically increased in the recent years mainly due to contributors like sedentary lifestyle, negative psychological state, poor health management skills, and deviations from the treatment regimen.

Considering the seriousness of the disease, it is very much essential to maintain the psychosocial well-being, besides adhering to the treatment regimen. Positive health can be operationalised by a combination of optimal status on biological, subjective, and functional measures. The present research focuses on the influence of positive health aspects on health management skills of type-2 diabetes mellitus patients. It also studies the relationship between the measures of positive health aspects. The research involves the designing of an instrument for assessing the health management skills and practices in the Indian context. The effectiveness of psychotherapeutic interventions on the positive health aspects of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients is also examined. The findings indicated that there was a significant positive relationship between the measures of positive health aspects.

The instrument designed yielded thirty-three items of health management skills to be included in the questionnaire. The responses of the participants were tested to examine the validity and reliability of the scale to ensure a quantitative and statistically proven identification of the responses. The test for quantitative variables was conducted by factor analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to confirm the factor structure of the constructs and validate the results using exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Finally, structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to examine the hypothesized relationships. The analysis showed that patients with higher level of positive health aspects showed better health management skills. The researcher selected few participants who scored low on the positive health aspects, and they were subjected to psychotherapeutic intervention for ten sessions spanning over one month. Results indicated significant improvement on all health aspects in the post-intervention phase. Findings were interpreted in the light of current conceptualizations in the area of study.