The benefits of postgraduate therapeutic education in diabetology in the Czech Republic

Abstract

Effective diabetes education is a keystone for diabetes treatment. At the University Hospital Olomouc, postgraduate courses for diabetes therapeutic educators are based on the recommendations of the Diabetes Education Study Group of the EASD. The research question for this study was "What is the efficacy of postgraduate courses over the course of five independent years 2010-2014?" The purpose of this prospective study was (1) to determine the level of the graduates' knowledge and skills at the end of the courses, (2) to assess their retention of knowledge after 3 months and (3) to verify the reliability of the knowledge tests applied. The research method was a longitudinal study based on a pre and post-test undertaken by the study participants between 2010 and 2014. During this time, five courses were taken by 88 healthcare professionals aged 21 through 69 from different departments. Each course consisted of 80 lessons facilitated by 24 specialists, undertaken within 4 months in 8 modules which was assessed with a knowledge test and also a practical test. The knowledge test was repeated after 3 months. The participants achieved 92.5% to 98.8% of the maximum knowledge points, while attaining 95% of the required practical skills. Three months later, the post-test showed that the level of knowledge had fallen to 88.8%-93.8% (p < .0001). The tests' reliability (Cronbach's Alpha) at the end of the courses was.727, while 3 months later, it increased to .999. It can be concluded that the chosen methods and forms of education (verbal, demonstrative, practical, etc.) are highly effective in terms of diabetes therapeutic educators' training. However, after 3 months, the study showed that the level of knowledge dropped by around 5%.