Perceptions and experiences of living with coexisting type 2 diabetes and severe mental illness: a scoping review.

AIMS: To map existing research-based knowledge of everyday life and illness management among people with coexisting type 2 diabetes and severe mental illness, and to identify study designs, aims, populations and themes.

METHODS

A systematic literature search was performed on 16 April 2019 using Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, Cinahl, the Cochrane Library, and the Web of Science to conduct a scoping review. Included studies were summarized with regard to the quantity of research, the study designs, aims, populations and themes

RESULTS

From 3406 records, we included 23 studies about everyday life and illness management among people with coexisting type 2 diabetes and severe mental illness. Four studies were qualitative (observations, interviews and focus groups), and 19 were quantitative (observational and interventions) and used questionnaires. Five themes emerged in the findings: (1) diet and exercise, but not other diabetes self-care activities, are consistently compromised in the target group; (2) psychiatric exacerbation diminishes diabetes self-care; (3) social support and high self-efficacy improve diabetes self-care; (4) use of healthcare services is compromised; and (5) quality of life and well-being is poor.

CONCLUSIONS

The limited research into the studied population's experiences with coexisting type 2 diabetes and severe mental illness is characterized by its heterogeneity in aims and methods and a strong focus on diabetes management and treatment. Further research focusing on the management of both conditions in everyday life is needed to improve specialized and integrated care targeting the population.