Patients' experience of admission to hospital with diabetic ketoacidosis and its psychological impact: an exploratory qualitative study

The primary aim of this study was to better understand patients' experience of admission to hospital with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and its psychological impact. The secondary aim was to improve our service provision for patients following an episode of DKA. Forty patients who had been admitted to hospital with DKA were invited to participate. Four patients agreed to take part (three female, one male; mean age 34 years, range 21–49 years). All participants had type 1 diabetes. Participants completed a semi‐structured interview and psychometric questionnaires. Descriptive statistics were generated for demographic and questionnaire data. Interview transcripts were qualitatively analysed using thematic analysis. The thematic analysis showed three important themes: Consequences of DKA; Recognising and Managing DKA; and Hospital Experience. The theme of Recognising and Managing DKA highlighted that only one participant recognised insufficient insulin as a trigger for DKA, and other people first recognised symptom severity in every case. The theme Hospital Experience seemed to support a number of studies that have found poor provision of care for those presenting with DKA. It is important to note that there were only four participants who contributed, which limited the conclusions that can be drawn. It appeared some patients lack understanding of what DKA is. It seems that better provision of information on DKA needs to be given to both the individual and their family members. There was some evidence that an admission for DKA is a marker for follow‐up psychological assessment. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons.