Barriers and facilitators in the acquisition of diabetes knowledge among tertiary-care nurses in central and southern Malawi: an exploratory-descriptive qualitative study.

Background: Numerous studies report low diabetes knowledge among nurses in sub-Saharan Africa. However, little is known about the factors that hinder and promote their acquisition of knowledge on diabetes mellitus. Understanding these factors is a pivotal step towards ensuring that nurses are knowledgeable and competent in the provision of care and education for patients with diabetes mellitus.

Methods: The study employed an exploratory-descriptive qualitative (EDQ) approach. Participants were identified from two tertiary hospitals. Twenty-six participants were purposively selected from these facilities. Data were collected through focus group discussions and analysis was done using Braun and Clarke's approach to thematic analysis.

Results: The following themes relating to barriers and facilitators in the nurses' acquisition of diabetes knowledge emerged from the study: (a) individual hindrances; (b) organizational drawbacks; (c) personal ways of knowing; (d) organizational factors enhancing knowledge; and (e) suggestions for improving the nurses' knowledge.

Conclusions: The study brings to light various challenges and opportunities in the acquisition of diabetes knowledge among tertiary-care nurses in Malawi. Given our study results, we believe that cost-effective measures can be utilised to address the barriers to the acquisition of diabetes knowledge among nurses. This is a crucial step towards ensuring that nurses are knowledgeable and competent in the provision of care for patients with diabetes in low-resource countries.