Awareness of diabetic retinopathy among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus attending Donga Clinic in Francistown, Botswana

Context: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) prevalence is steadily increasing in the country and by raising patient awareness, health providers can educate on regular eye exams, stimulate collaboration with experts, enhance monitoring and follow-up, and improve the patient's overall condition. Aim: To assess the awareness of diabetic retinopathy (DR) among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) during their new/follow-up visit in a diabetes clinic. Settings and Design: Patients were given a questionnaire for 4 weeks. Methods and Material: A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted, and data were analyzed with SPSS. Results: A total of 160 patients were enrolled (59.08 study was conductedents wite females. 42% had DM duration of less than 5 years. Hypertension was a comorbidity at 83%. Blood sugar control was good among 53%. 96.3% were nonsmokers, 1.9% quit smoking, and 1.9% smoked. 100% believed diabetes may affect their eyes, 83.1% stated eye exams were necessary even when diabetes was well managed, 96.9% believed eye exams were necessary when diabetes was poorly controlled. Majority (43%) felt they should go for eye checkups every 6 months. 75% were unaware of the treatments available for DR. Patients were aware of blindness, cataract, glaucoma, DR, at 63%, 14%, 10%, and 13%, respectively. The primary reason for undergoing eye examination was doctor's referral at 94%. Healthcare provider was the common source of information on DM complications (79%). Conclusion: The need arises to raise DR awareness to increase case detection thus reduce the strain of DR's sight-threatening complications.