Introduction Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaires (DTSQs and DTSQc) are tools used in clinical practice and research to determine patient satisfaction with their treatment. Respondents are asked to rate their level of agreement with 8 statements pertaining to aspects of satisfaction with their diabetes management and perceived frequency of hyper or hypoglycemic episodes. While Arabic translations of the original English validated questionnaires exist, there is a need to adapt unique versions for use in individual countries to test the equivalence of the language, conceptual content, and response scales. The objective of this study is to conduct a systematic linguistic adaptation of the DTSQ questionnaires for administration to patients with diabetes in Qatar. Materials & Methods The 8-item DTSQs and DTSQc questionnaires from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Egypt were acquired and reviewed. One merged version for Qatar was first assessed by a sociologist with expertise in qualitative research methods and questionnaire design and the subsequent draft reviewed by a diabetes clinician (both native Arabic speakers). The resulting modified DTSQs and DTSQc versions were then piloted through cognitive interviewing techniques with a convenience sample of diabetes patients attending the Qatar Diabetes Association centre for care. Results The Qatar versions of DTSQs and DTSQc were piloted with 11 patients: 8 (73%) had type 2 diabetes (T2DM) treated with monotherapy (4); combination oral therapy (2); insulin (1) or diet or exercise (1); 1 of the 3 type 1 diabetes patients was using an insulin pump. Most items on the questionnaires were clear; however, some misunderstanding arose regarding specific terms including the intended distinction between “practical”, “convenient”, and “flexible” features of their treatment, and meanings for “satisfied”, “recommend” and “feel” with respect to therapy. For example, did “flexible” in the item, 'how flexible have you been finding your treatment to be recently' mean how adaptable has the regimen been according to the patient's lifestyle or that doses could be adjusted; responses would vary between patients using insulin or not. Discussions, Conclusion An Arabic adaptation of the DTSQs and DTSQc questionnaires for Qatar was successfully completed. Further recommendations have been made to arrive at a final revised version as misinterpretation of some questions was identified when exploring practical use of the working draft with actual diabetes patients. The next step will be psychometric testing (validation) of this Qatar Arabic adaptation for use in clinical and research settings.

Wilbur, K., et al. (2012). "Diabetes treatment satisfaction questionnaire Qatar Arabic adaptation." International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy 34(1): 178.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23237883