Diabetes educational interventions in care homes: a scoping review

TL;DR

This review explores how educational programs for care home staff can improve diabetes care, highlighting the need for more detailed and tested training.

Contribution

The study identifies gaps in current diabetes education for care homes and emphasizes the need for comprehensive training programs.

Findings

Educating nurses improves diabetes care practices and behaviors.

Training increases staff knowledge and confidence, enhancing care quality.

Barriers and facilitators to delivering diabetes training in care homes were identified.

Abstract

Diabetes affects approximately 10.5% of the global adult population and is more prevalent in care homes due to residents’ advanced age and multimorbidity. Effective diabetes management in these settings is essential to prevent complications and maintain quality of life, yet evidence addressing the specific needs of this population remains limited. High-quality care relies on access to appropriate clinical education. This scoping review will synthesise evidence on educational interventions to support diabetes care provision in care home settings.

This scoping review was undertaken in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across three electronic databases: CINAHL Plus, Medline, and PsycINFO. Methodological quality of the included primary studies was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT).

In total, 10 studies were included in the review, encompassing evidence from a range of international contexts. Analysis revealed three prominent themes; Firstly, educating nurses about diabetes can improve practice and behaviour. Secondly, educational interventions can increase staff knowledge and confidence, which is linked to enhancing the quality of care. Finally, a range of facilitators and barriers influencing the delivery of diabetes training in care homes were identified.

The review suggests that educational interventions in care homes can enhance diabetes care. However, while the current evidence is encouraging, there are a lack of empirically tested educational interventions for diabetes education in this setting. Further, current educational programmes appear to lack key detail including footcare, eye care and COVID-19. To ensure the provision of high-quality diabetic care, it is therefore important to enhance the training and education of staff members.

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