Diabetes in Ghana: A Review of Research on Prevalence, Experiences and Healthcare
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2013-12-09
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Abstract
Diabetes is a major cause of adult morbidity and death in Ghana. In this chapter we review empirical studies on diabetes in Ghana to highlight trends in prevalence as well as medical and social responses to its public health challenges. We conducted by a search of the PUBMED and Psycinfo databases, supplemented by a manual search of bibliographies of the identified articles and through the Ghana Medical Journal as well as local sources of literature available across public libraries. The key findings are as follow. The prevalence of diabetes has risen from 0.2% in the late 1950s (among a community of men in Ho) to 6.0% in 2009 (among a community of men in Kumasi). In Accra, a prevalence of 6.4% was recorded in a mixed community in the late 1990s and 9.1% among civil servants in 2006. Prevalence rates of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and impaired fasting glucose (IFG), when measured are double or treble the diabetes prevalence, which suggests that higher numbers of individuals are at risk of developing diabetes in the future. People living with diabetes experience complex psychosocial challenges including psychological and emotional insecurities, and limited social support. Management and self-care is poor, and healer-shopping between medical systems is common. Major limitations exist with diabetes care including poor diabetes education, a lack of guidelines for diabetes care, erratic supply of essential diabetes drugs at health facilities and poorly trained health care professionals to manage diabetes including doctors, nurses and dietitians. We consider challenges for research, healthcare and policy.