Write a literature Review on your FYP Topic in the form of a Scholarly Scientific Review paper: School of Health Sciences Literature Review, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore

Objectives of this Assignment:

1. Students will learn how to review related literature based on 4 original journal
articles related to their FYP topic.

2. To develop content-related knowledge based on their FYPproject.

3. To be able to learn the structure and format of a literature review based on APA guidelines.

Assignment Instructions

This is an individual assignment. Write a literature review on your FYP topic in the form of a scholarly Scientific review paper. The primary purpose of this assignment is to introduce you to literature searches, scientific writing, citation procedures, and bibliography formatting.

The influence of Patient’s Education, Age, and Duration of Diabetes on foot care knowledge and practices In patients with Diabetes Mellitus

Introduction

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a potentially disabling chronic disease. It is projected that the total number of people with DM will rise from 171 million in 2000 to 366 million in 2030 worldwide (Wild, Roglic, Green, Sicree, & King, 2004). Singapore has also seen a steady increase in the number of DM patients from 8.2% in 2004 to 11.3% in 2010 (“Disease Burden | Ministry of Health,” 2013). Diabetic foot ulcers is one of the several serious complications of DM, which leads to high mortality and morbidity.

Diabetic foot ulcer impacts the quality of life in diabetic foot patients particularly on mobility and both physical and social functioning (Naicker et al., 2009). In Singapore, almost 700 lower limb amputations occur annually due to diabetic foot complications (Nather et al., 2008).

The knowledge levels of diabetic foot care directly impacts upon the individuals’ practice of foot care self-management. Knowledge acquired may be through several forms such as written leaflets and brochures, verbal advice and counseling sessions.

Poor foot care behaviors together with the lack of knowledge is found to increase the risk of ulcerations, amputations and mortality (Formosa, Gatt, & Chockalingam, 2012).

The purpose of this review is to corroborate and assess the factors that influence the individual’s knowledge of diabetic foot care such as patient education, their age and the duration since diagnosis. Inadequate diabetic foot education from primary care settings leading to poor understanding is a major issue that diabetic patients face.

Therefore, adequate identification of the factors that influence the knowledge and practice of diabetic foot care will allow primary care educators to meet the learning needs of the population in Singapore.

This review is relevant to nursing as nurses play the important role of health educators and function as the primary source and channel of information to patients under their care. In order to address the issue of diabetic foot ulcer complications, root causes that prevent the increase in knowledge of foot care are to be identified and tackled (Formosa et al., 2012). By reviewing this, educational measures can better be crafted towards the needs of the patients and to fill the gaps of the current situation.

Lack of effective diabetic foot care education in Primary Care Settings care settings are where most diabetic patients receive their education. Foot care education is crucial to the practice of diabetic foot patients as the lack of it is associated with a 3.2-increased risk of amputations (Bartolo, Mizzi, & Formosa, 2013).

In a cross sectional study conducted by Mehra, Thawait, Karandikar, Gupta, & Narang  (2008), results revealed that 76.4% of the participants were unaware that they were

required to provide special attention and inspect their feet regularly. Using a questionnaire about self-care behavior, findings revealed that 99.8% of 500 participants did not inspect their feet daily. Similarly, the Formosa et al., (2012) study conducted among the Maltese population highlighted the importance of diabetes foot care education. Results revealed that 54% stated they did not remember receiving foot care education despite foot deformities.

The importance of education is further emphasized in a study conducted by Pollock, Unwin, & Connolly (2004). Self-administered questionnaires were posted to randomly selected participants. Of the 365 usable questionnaires that were returned, it was found that those who received education on foot care had a higher knowledge score of 6.9, compared to a score of 5.4 for those who did not, with the maximum possible

Non-significant factors of Age and Duration In a study conducted by Bartolo et al., (2013), the research objective was to evaluate foot care behaviors in Type 2 diabetic individuals according to age. Previous studies had identified that age can affect cognitive function and those who are older than 65 years with diabetes generally have impaired learning (Cosway, Strachan, Dougall, Frier, Deary, 2001). 60 participants were randomly selected for this non-experimental comparative study under the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki 2008.

Their behavior was assessed using the Nottingham Assessment of Functional Footcare (NAFF), a quantitative self-report measure of the extent of compliance to foot care.

However, findings revealed there was no significant difference in the foot care behavior of the participants aged between 45-65 years and those aged over 65 years with Type 2 diabetes. Interestingly, the study by Ko et al., (2011) correlated that the age group of those less than 60 years of age had a lower knowledge score than those above 60 years of age

Conclusion

Primary care patient education evidently appears to be a major factor of influence on the knowledge of diabetic foot care as evidenced by the significant increase in the knowledge score after intervention (Vatankhah et al., 2009). Although the studies were conducted primarily in Asia, the regions reviewed were in rural areas where the socioeconomic status and the accessibility to primary care settings could be significant contributing factors to the results of the studies. Hence the results may differ from urban areas such as Singapore.

An additional limitation of the studies was the wide range in the participants’ ages. An interesting discovery was the significantly higher knowledge score of the older age group compared to the younger group. This observation may be further explored, specifically examining the factors that differentiate the knowledge score in the age groups such as increasing awareness of body image changes and lifestyle modification after retirement

The impact of English language proficiency and Socio-economic Status on Academic Performance of Tertiary Students

Introduction

An individual’s academic performance is closely linked to their life opportunities, income, and well-being (Battle and Lewis 2002). It is vital for the successful development of young people in society to better able to make the transition into adulthood, to achieve occupational and economic success (Saskatchewan school boards association, 2011).

Therefore, it is vital to have a clear understanding of what benefits or hinders one’s educational attainment. English language proficiency (ELP) and socio-economic status(SES) are part of the several factors that determine their academic performance. Socioeconomic factors comprising income, education level, the occupation of parents, and relationship with family members may all affect academic performance.

SES is an important factor in shaping student’s attitude towards their education. Students in high SES have easy access to the necessary things which they require for attaining outstanding academic results (Ahmar and Anwar, 2013). Apparently, a student with good ELP is expected to perform well in English and other school subjects (World Journal of English Language,2012). Jadie, Sonya, Laura, and Natasha (2012), claimed that low ELP has been considered a barrier to learning and academic success.

Due to the plight faced during understanding the test content and academic work. Hence, a lack in ELP can result in poor academic performance. Comparing the high school dropout rate in 2007, among 16-24 years old (16.7%) was highest in low-income.