‘A Lifestyle Disease’: How Indonesian Health Professionals Perceive Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM)

Abstraksi

Rationale: In early twentieth century T2DM had been well-known as lifestyle disease in which the problem solving relied primarily on individuals (McNaughton 2013, p. 283). As a result, victim blaming and irresponsibility is frequently attached to diabetic adults (Bell, McNaughton & Salmon 2011, p. 3; Browne et al. 2013, p. 8) distancing them from health services (McNaughton 2013, p. 284; Puhl & Heuer 2010, p. 1023). Contrary to growing evidence revealing that T2DM has no single cause instead multi-linkage among individuals, socio-political contexts and cultural settings which have been frequently overlooked resulting in oversimplification of the problem analysis and stigmatisation (Foley 2017, p. 36; McNaughton 2013, p. 283). As health workers have been confirmed as a potential source of stigma (Browne et al. 2013, p. 5), investigating standpoints regarding T2DM among them is essential to address stigma allying with the disease. Methods: The study utilised focus group (Coreil 1995, p. 194) as a self-contained method. Morgan (1997, cited in Liamputtong 2013, p. 78) contends focus group is the primary source of data collection. The data is then complemented with field notes. Results and Implications Several themes emerged involving: (a) Definition of T2DM which has just been framed in biomedical/pathophysiological terms (b) Causes of T2DM; lifestyle is the centre (c) Diabetes-related stigma and its implication (d) T2DM treatments; individual responsibility is the core. Health professionals have tendency to blame diabetic people as regard their condition which may distance them in accessing health care. This concern should be then addressed.