The lived experiences of young people living with type 1 diabetes: A hermeneutic study.
Malin Rising Holmström, Siv Söderberg
PMID 34291593WHAT IT FOUND
Young people with type 1 diabetes described everyday life as ruled by diabetes: constant blood glucose checks, insulin decisions, carbohydrate counting, and fear of hypoglycaemia at school.
Parents, especially mothers, were central support; school staff knowledge was often lacking.
Key findings
01The overall theme was living a transformed and re-organized everyday life, with six subthemes covering body changes, being governed by diabetes, identity, support, information, and school problems.
02Young people worried nobody in school could help them if they had hypoglycaemia or hyperglycaemia, and school routines such as meal timing and snack access were often not understood.
03Parents, especially mothers, were described as central support for diabetes management, while contact with diabetes nurses and physicians was not highlighted as the most important support.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study aimed to explore lived experience, not to generalise findings, so transferability depends on similarity of context. The sample was small and purposive, with seven girls and three boys from four municipalities, so it may not represent all young people with type 1 diabetes. Recruitment used school nurses sending letters to parents, which may favour young people already engaged with school health services and family support. The authors did not return to participants for member checking; they returned to the interview texts instead. The researchers' pre-understanding as registered nurses and nursing researchers may have influenced interpretation. The study was conducted in Sweden, and school and diabetes-care arrangements may differ elsewhere.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these themes as evidence that a school diabetes education programme improves outcomes. This study interviewed seven girls and three boys and reports their experiences, not measured effects.