Increasing Compliance of Diabetic Screening Eye Exams

Abstract

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the principal causes of vision loss in middle-age and older adults worldwide. This quasi-experimental study examined the impact of patient diabetic retinopathy education and eye exam screening card on compliance with annual diabetic eye screening. About 40 participants ranging in ages from 18-80 years of age diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and without having an eye screening exam in the past two years were recruited from a family practice clinic in an underserved community in the Midwest. Outcome measures were completed eye screening exams and knowledge pertaining to diabetic retinopathy. Screening results were compared to a retrospective non-intervention group, and knowledge was compared pre- and post- education within the intervention group. The results showed that 30.8% of the participants completed an eye screening exam by returning the screening card. Using a Fisher’s Exact test and a McNemar test, there was an improvement in diabetic retinopathy knowledge from pre- to post-test in one question along with improvement of knowledge in two questions but not statically significant due to the small sample size. This project will foster awareness to patients about the positive consequences of compliancy with prevention measures, specifically in regards to diabetic retinopathy.