Abstract
Objective: To assess the effect of an educational program on the knowledge of diabetic patients concerning preventative measures for retinopathy and to identify how to find the difference between total patient knowledge and their demographic characteristics (age, gender, and level of education).
Methodology: This Quasi-experimental study was carried out in Diabetic and Endocrine Center in Al- Nasiriya City, Iraq from March 9, 2022 to January 1, 2023. Non-probability (purposive sample) of 60 diabetes mellitus patients who visited Diabetic and Endocrine Center were included. The data were collected with a constructed questionnaire.
Results: The difference in knowledge at pre-test scores between the study group and the control group was not statistically significant. The mean of the study group was 0.2542 while the mean for the control group was 0.2236 the study group. The mean posttest knowledge score was 0.7542 in study group and 0.2347 in control group. There was no significant relationship between patients' knowledge regarding preventive measures for diabetic retinopathy and socio-demographic variables such as age, gender, level of education for the study group in either the pre-test or the post-test.
Conclusion: Patient education is an effective way to teach them about diabetic retinopathy and make them more aware of it, as well as to get them to take steps to prevent it.

Key words: Retinopathy, diabetes mellitus, preventive measures, educational program.