Assessment of the Knowledge of Diabetes Mellitus Among School Teachers within the Scope of the Managing Diabetes at School Program

OBJECTIVE Training teachers and education professionals on diabetes is crucial for full-time monitoring of diabetic children in schools. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge on diabetes in a group of school teachers in Turkey. METHODS Between November 2010 and November 2011, 1054 teachers from three regions of Ankara were given a questionnaire to assess their knowledge on diabetes. The mean age of the group (27% males, 73% females) was 38.8±8 years. 61.7% of the participants were class teachers, 23.3% were school counselors, and the rest were physical education teachers and administrators. RESULTS A fair percentage (47.6%) of the participants had a moderate knowledge level on diabetes and 32.4% expressed a lower level of knowledge. A large proportion (94%) gave an accurate definition of diabetes. Of the total group of 1054 teachers, 625 were aware that blood glucose level might decrease in diabetic children during follow-up. Also, 75% believed that diabetic children were eligible for physical education classes. 52.8% of these teachers had no diabetic child in their classes and teachers with a diabetic patient in their family had better knowledge of diabetes compared to their counterparts. CONCLUSIONS Our study results indicate that school teachers have limited knowledge on diabetes. We believe that their knowledge levels can be improved by widespread training programs.