Development and Validation of the Perception of Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose Scale in Insulin-Treated Patients With Diabetes.

Background And Purpose: The Perception of Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose (P-SMBG) scale was developed and validated to assess perceptions of self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) in insulin-treated patients with diabetes.

Method: An initial 68-item version of the P-SMBG has been evaluated by a panel of professionals and patients. A sample of 375 patients tested the revised scale.

Results: Factor analysis suggested a 19-item scale and a 2-factor structure, separating negatively and positively worded items. Cronbach's alpha was .84 and .72, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was .66 and .57, respectively for both factors. Item-total correlations were in the range of .23-.66. Convergent/divergent validity was confirmed for the negatively worded items.

Conclusions: The final P-SMBG scale (21 items) can be used to assess positive and negative perceptions of SMBG in insulin-treated patients with diabetes.