Evaluation of the efficiency of two different teaching methods in safe subcutaneous injection skills in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients

Aim: This study was conducted using an experimental design to examine the effectiveness of video-assisted education and low-fidelity simulation-based training in developing the skill of safe subcutaneous insulin injection administration. Methods: The majority of participants in the study were male (56.1%) and had completed primary education (65.9%). It was observed that 76.8% of the participants were non-smokers, and 59.8% did not have any chronic diseases. The mean age of the participants was 60.6±9.8 years, the mean BMI was 29.6±6.3, the average platelet count was 295±93.8, mean PT was 13±3.1, and mean aPTT was 1.21±0.37.There were no statistically significant differences within or between the groups (low-fidelity simulation model group and video-assisted education group) in terms of mean blood glucose levels measured at fasting and postprandial times in the morning, noon, and evening, as well as HbA1c values at the first week, first month, and third month following the initiation of subcutaneous insulin injection (p>0.05). Similarly, no significant differences were observed in pain intensity scores associated with insulin injection either between or within the groups (p>0.05). However, in the assessments of bruising (ecchymosis) and lipohypertrophy conducted at the first week, first month, and third month, the incidence of ecchymosis and lipohypertrophy was found to be significantly lower in the video-assisted education group compared to the low-fidelity simulation model group (p<0.05). Nonetheless, no significant within-group differences were detected in ecchymosis and lipohypertrophy rates over time (p>0.05). In the subcutaneous injection skill assessments, the video-assisted education group had significantly higher mean scores for both material preparation and subcutaneous injection performance compared to the low-fidelity simulation group (p<0.05). However, no statistically significant differences were found within groups over time for either skill area (p>0.05). Results: It was determined that the use of video-assisted education in training related to subcutaneous insulin injection in patients with type 2 diabetes reduced the incidence of ecchymosis and lipohypertrophy and improved subcutaneous injection skills