Study Finds Diabetics Hide Mental Health When Consulting Doctor

Cleveland, OH, November 3, 2022 — Diabetes Daily, a leading website and online community for people with diabetes, along with Thrivable, a real-time market research platform, conducted a survey to understand how satisfied people with diabetes are with their healthcare. The survey examined interactions with healthcare providers and access to medical resources. It also aimed to identify any disparities based on ethnicity or socioeconomic status. 

The survey revealed that a surprising number of people with diabetes rarely or never discuss their mental health, diet and exercise habits, or even lab results with their healthcare providers. The results also showed that socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic disparities do exist, and Black and Latino people with diabetes are half as likely to feel supported or empowered at healthcare appointments.

“This survey helped to highlight how rare it is for people with diabetes to get the care and attention they deserve,” says Allison Caggia, executive editor at Diabetes Daily. “An alarming 47% of our panel reported never or rarely discussing their mental health with their healthcare provider, and 23% rarely or never discuss diet or exercise. These patients need information and guidance on these topics that are absolutely critical to diabetes management.”

Other key findings from the survey results include:

• People with type 1 diabetes were overwhelmingly more likely to see an endocrinologist (70%) than those with type 2 diabetes (22%).

• White respondents were most likely (55%) to see an endocrinologist for their primary diabetes management versus 22% of Black respondents and 17% of Latino respondents.

• Latino respondents (49%) and Black respondents (32%) reported feeling somewhat or very anxious before an appointment as opposed to an average of 25% of all respondents.

• 53% of white respondents report “always” getting the most up-to-date information compared to 32% of Black respondents and 26% of Latino respondents.

“It's really striking to see the disproportionate level of anxiety and lack of satisfaction with their medical appointments that people of color experience," says Maria Muccioli, research lead with Thrivable. “The fact that people of color — and in particular Black and Latino respondents — are less than half as likely to see a diabetes specialist as compared to white people further highlights the disparity in health access to even baseline standard of diabetes care.”

This work follows a previous survey Thrivable and the ADA completed in 2021 that assessed healthcare disparities among people with diabetes. That research showed that people of color were disproportionately affected by lack of access not only to medical care, but also to healthy food and reliable transportation.

The Thrivable and Diabetes Daily results were based on a national online survey conducted between September 6 and 19, 2022, of 532 people living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. View the full report.

About Thrivable
Thrivable connects patients and companies to create better products and services for the next generation of healthcare. Our real-time market research platform makes it easy for patients to be their own advocates by sharing their insights, stories, and perspectives via surveys, interviews, focus groups, and usability studies. Healthcare companies turn to Thrivable to ensure the voice of the customer drives important business decisions every day. 

About Diabetes Daily
Diabetes Daily, part of the Everyday Health Group, is a website and online community dedicated to helping people with diabetes thrive. Every year, we help people meet peers and learn to manage diabetes through our vibrant message board and original writing. Diabetes Daily offers education, support, and companionship to our many readers and users. Every one of our writers, editors, and moderators is impacted by diabetes, and we believe that all people with diabetes, of any type, can live healthy, happy, and hope-filled lives.