Health challenges
The role of gender in compliance and attendance at an outpatient clinic for type 2 diabetes mellitus in Trinidad
Women in Trinidad and Tobago seek help at diabetes clinics more often than men
Authors:
F. Babwah; S. Baksh; L. Blake
Publisher:
Pan American Journal of Public Health, 2006
This article, in the Pan American Journal of Public Health, explores the relationship between gender, attendance at outpatient clinics, and compliance with treatment, amongst patients with diabetes in the island of Trinidad. It focuses on type 2 diabetes mellitus – a form of diabetes which typically starts in adulthood rather than childhood, and which is associated with obesity in the developed world. The paper finds that there is no marked gender difference in the incidence and prevalence of this form of diabetes in Trinidad. However, more women attend the outpatient clinics, and their compliance with the treatment regimen is better than in men. Men are more likely to engage in health risk behaviours such as drinking and smoking.
The article concludes that men seem less likely to use public health services than women. This corresponds with past World Health Organization studies which indicated that men are less inclined to engage in help-seeking behaviors. As a result, they remain unaware of the presence of type 2 diabetes mellitus until complications begin to occur. The authors recommend that future health promotion and prevention strategies should be tailored to target men and boys with type 2 diabetes. The long-term repercussions of disabling complications could be minimised by encouraging men to be more health conscious and compliant with treatment.
