AIM:
To explore reasons for non-attendance at type 2 diabetes self-management education.
METHODS:
To elicit the main themes explaining non-attendance, 15 semi-structured interviews were conducted with persons referred to, but not attending, self-management education. Systematic text condensation was applied to code and generate themes subsequently organised under individual and organisational factors.
RESULTS:
Individual (illness, lack of perceived benefit) and organisational factors relating to schedule (four whole days, time of day, notification) and content (supermarket visit) were cited as reasons for non-attendance.
CONCLUSIONS:
In this study, patients cited both individual and organisational factors as explaining non-attendance at type 2 diabetes self-management education. Further studies should take into account the importance of timing and of tailoring schedules and content to individuals' life situations and resources. As organisational factors are likely to vary across programmes and settings, more case studies are needed to further elucidate the dynamic relationship between individual and organisational factors to explain non-attendance at type 2 diabetes self-management education.