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Ishfaq Vaja

School of Psychology

Faculty of Health

Email: I.Vaja@2016.ljmu.ac.uk

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Diabetes is a metabolic disease that is diagnosed on the basis of sustained high concentration of glucose in the blood (Liu et al,2016). Diabetes, particularly cases of Type 2 diabetes is a growing health problem for people of South Asian descent in the UK. The likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes is reported to be as much as 6 times higher in South Asians than Europeans (Shah & Kanaya, 2014). In fact, South Asian people make up just 4% of the total UK population, but account for an estimated 8% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes (Diabetes UK,2017). With this in mind, diabetes costs the NHS approximately £10 billion/ 10% of the NHS budget (NHS,2014). Diabetes UK, have claimed that if current trends continue than the number of people with diabetes will rise to five million by 2025, and the cost of treating diabetes will spiral out of control. Prevention is better than treatment for individuals health as well as the health of the NHS (Diabetes UK,2015).

Given the elevated risk of diabetes in the South Asian population, there is a need to understand the underlying beliefs about diabetes in this population. My PhD has adopted mixed methodologies (Quantitative & Qualitative) to explore South Asian population's perceptions of diabetes risk and to investigate their knowledge, beliefs and experiences of engaging with health promotion behaviours to prevent the onset of diabetes.

Degrees

2014, Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, MSc Health Psychology
2013, Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, BSc Applied Psychology

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