Knowledge of School Nurses on the Basic Principles of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus Self-Control and Treatment in Children

Anna Stefanowicz-Bielska (), Magdalena Słomion and Małgorzata Rąpała
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Anna Stefanowicz-Bielska: Division of Internal and Pediatric Nursing, Institute of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Health Sciences with the Institute of Maritime and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Gdansk, 80-211 Gdansk, Poland
Magdalena Słomion: Division of Internal and Pediatric Nursing, Institute of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Health Sciences with the Institute of Maritime and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Gdansk, 80-211 Gdansk, Poland
Małgorzata Rąpała: Department of Pediatric Surgery, Marciniak Hospital, 50-041 Wroclaw, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 24, 1-10

Abstract: School nurses should participate in the care of children with type 1 diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to assess the level of knowledge of school nurses about the basic principles of self-control and the treatment of type 1 diabetes mellitus and to attempt to determine the factors that influence this level of knowledge. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among school nurses from October 2018 to November 2019 in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. The study was conducted using a self-constructed questionnaire. The survey included questions about the sociodemographic characteristics of the respondents, and a test of the knowledge and skills regarding the principles of self-control and the treatment of type 1 diabetes mellitus (16 test questions). This study included 168 Polish school nurses (mean age ± SD = 55.1 ± 8.9 years). Most of the nurses had a secondary education (81%), worked in a municipal educational institution (78.6%), and provided care to more than one student with type 1 diabetes mellitus at school (70.2%). The average level of knowledge of school nurses was 12.5 ± 2.0 points (maximum 16). The nurses working in a village school and those who worked only in one school had lower levels of knowledge. Only 85.7% of nurses reported that they could independently perform a blood glucose measurement with a glucometer, and as many as 56.5% were unable to determine the level of ketone bodies in the urine with Keto-Diastix test strips. Only 62.5% of nurses had a glucometer and glucometer strips in their nursing office. A total of 19.6% of nurses did not have glucagon (1 mg GlucaGen HypoKit ® , Novo Nordisk A/S, Bagsværd, Denmark) or an ampoule with 20% glucose for an intravenous administration. The knowledge of school nurses about the principles of self-control and the treatment of type 1 diabetes mellitus is insufficient. Due to the strong increase in the incidence of type 1 diabetes mellitus among children and adolescents, it is important to organize permanent, continuous, and mandatory training on the principles of self-control and the treatment of type 1 diabetes mellitus for school nurses. The equipment in Polish school nurses’ offices should be supplemented with a working glucometer and blood glucose test strips, and the set of obligatory medications in the school nurse’s office should be supplemented with glucagon for students with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Keywords: diabetes mellitus type 1; child; students; nurses; schools; knowledge (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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