EFFECTIVENESS OF PEER GROUP SUPPORT IN IMPROVING SELF-MANAGEMENT AMONG PATIENTS WITH DIABETES MELLITUS

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that requires continuous Self-Management to maintain blood glucose control. Psychosocial barriers, low self-efficacy, and inadequate social support often result in suboptimal Self-Management, highlighting the need for Peer Group Support interventions to enhance patients' ability to manage their condition. This study aimed to determine the effect of Peer Group Support on the Self-Management of patients with diabetes mellitus. This study employed a pre-experimental design using a one-group pretest-posttest approach. The population consisted of all Prolanis participants diagnosed with diabetes mellitus at Bangsal Community Health Center, Mojokerto Regency, totaling 73 individuals. Purposive sampling was applied, resulting in a sample of 62 respondents. The research instrument used was the Diabetes Self-Management Questionnaire (DSMQ). Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test. The results showed that before the Peer Group Support intervention, most respondents had a moderate level of Self-Management 69.4%, while after the intervention, almost all respondents demonstrated moderate Self-Management 77.4%. The statistics test yielded a p-value of 0.000 (<0.05), indicating a significant effect of Peeer Group Support on the Self-Management of patients with diabetes mellitus at Bangsal Community Health Center, Mojokerto Regency. Peer Group Support provided emotional, informational, appraisal, and instrumental support that improved patients' self-management abilities. Respondents who did not show an improvement in Self-Management may have been influenced by factors such as educational level, occupation, duration of diabetes, and behavioral changes that require a longer period to achieve measurable improvement, although their Self-Management scores increased.