Contribution of multidisciplinary healthcare professionals in the management of gestational diabetes mellitus: case study on selected hospitals in Dhaka

Abstract

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a common metabolic disorder that occurs during pregnancy. GDM can cause significant problems, including maternal complications, perinatal complications, and metabolic disorders in offspring in the later life. The primary management method for women with GDM is nutrition therapy. Some women with GDM require diet therapy alone, while some women require both diet and insulin therapy. The present study was aimed to evaluate the attitude of multidisciplinary healthcare professionals in the engagement of the treatment and management of GDM patients in Bangladesh. The sample size was selected 30 for four groups (patient, doctor, pharmacist and authority) and data were collected from 120 participants from hospital located in Dhaka city using a paper-based questionnaire survey. This study shows that, most of the patients (14%) had a history of diabetes in their family; 67% of the GDM participants feel the necessity of involvement of a pharmacist for their care, whereas, only a few think they need assistance from nurse (17%) and dietitian (17%). Nearly 43% of the doctors think a pharmacist can take responsibility in the management of GDM. Whereas, 57% of the doctors cannot agree that clinical pharmacists can take a responsibility in dose adjustment for the patients. Hundred percent of the authorities believe that pharmacist can play a significant role in the management of GDM. Moreover, 90% of the authorities are currently willing to have pharmacist in their patient management supporting team. Therefore, the findings of the study can play a significant role for the policy maker to take a decision regarding the involvement of clinical pharmacists in the management of GDM patients.