Self-care behaviours and associated factors among type 2 diabetes patients in Ghana: A systematic review

Introduction: Diabetes remains an emerging public health challenge in Ghana. The control of cardio‑metabolic risk factors among type 2 diabetes patients in the country is suboptimal, leading to massive healthcare costs. This systematic review examined the extent of adherence to self-care behaviours and associated factors among type 2 diabetes patients in Ghana. Methods: : PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Google scholar were used to identify quantitative observational studies published between 1990 and June 2022. Studies exclusive to type 2 diabetes patients ≥18 years of age in a Ghanaian setting were included in this review. Findings of primary studies were analysed using narrative synthesis. Results: : Eleven (11) studies, presenting data on a total of 2,503 type 2 diabetes patients, were included. All the studies were published in the last decade (2015-2021) and a majority (45.5%) of them were from the Greater Accra Region. The mean number of days (per week) participants adhered to a self‐care behaviour were in the ranges of 3.9–4.4 for diet, 4.2–4.8 for physical activity, 0.5–2.2 for self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG), and 2.9–5.0 for foot care. Adherence rates for medication were in the range of 33.5–84.5%. Patient-related factors, sociodemographic/economic-related factors, condition-related factors, and healthcare system-related factors were associated with the practice of self-care behaviours. Conclusion: Adherence to self-care behaviours among type 2 diabetes patients in Ghana remains an ongoing challenge, with significant variations in adherence among patients with different characteristics. Public health interventions are needed to address the variations in adherence to self-care behaviours among type 2 diabetes patients.