Determination of the effect of foot care behaviors of individuals with and without diabetic foot wounds on self-efficacy and self-care activities

Diabetic foot is a complication with high care costs, which increases the length of hospital stay and negatively affects the quality of life of individuals. This study was conducted to determine the effects of foot care behavior on self-efficacy and self-care activities of individuals with and without diabetic foot wounds, and to determine sociodemographic and disease-specific variables that affect foot care behavior, self-efficacy and self-care activities. This is a cross-sectional study and was conducted with 120 patients between 2021-2022. The data were collected with the Patient Identification Form, Foot Care Behavior Scale (FCBS), Diabetic Foot Care Self-Efficacy Scale (DFCSS), and Diabetes Self-Care Scale (DSCS). Data were transferred to SPSS 22 software and analyzed with Kruskal Wallis H Test, t-Test, Mann Whitney U test, ANOVA test. The mean age of the patients with diabetic foot wound was 65,00±10,64 years, 80% of these patiwents were male, 73,3% of them were married, and 70% of them were primary school graduates. A significant difference was found between the patients with diabetic foot wounds, performing foot self-examination, checking the inside of shoes while wearing shoes, points to be considered while choosing shoes, and FCBS, DFCSS and DSCS scores (p<0,05). The mean age of the patients without diabetic foot wound was 59,85±12,12, and 60% of these patients were female, 83,3% of them were married, and 36,7% of them were primary school graduates. A difference was determined between the education levels, place of residence the individuals without diabetic foot wounds and their state of checking the inside of shoes, and the scores of FCBS, DFCSS, and DSCS (p<0,05). In the examination of the relationship between the scales, a positive and significant relationship was found between "Foot Care Behavior" and "Diabetic Foot Care Self-Efficacy" (r=0,722, p<0,05) and "Diabetes Self-Care (r=0,618, p<0,05)" scale scores, and also a significant and positive relationship was found between "Diabetic Foot Care Self-Efficacy" and "Diabetes Self-Care" scale scores (r=0,719, p<0,05). In conclusion, the self-efficacy levels of individuals without diabetic foot wound were found to be higher compared to the individuals with foot wounds. It is considered that foot care behavior will improve, self-efficacy and self-care levels for foot care will increase, and it will be easier for patients to struggle with this complication, together with the education to be provided for the individuals before the development of foot wounds.