THE EFFECTOF SELF-MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING HEMODIALYSIS

Quality of life is an important criterion in indicating the effectiveness of health
care. Despite evidence of the effectiveness of self-management interventions in chronic diseases, few
studies have been made regarding the value of self-management programs in patients undergoing
hemodialysis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of self-management program on
the quality of life in patients undergoing hemodialysis.
Materials & Methods: This study is a randomized clinical trial. The sample consisted of 82 patients
undergoing hemodialysis admitted to the dialysis ward of Taleghani Hospital. After purposive
selection, the patients were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. The data were
completed 12 weeks before and after of intervention by using the demographic information, and
kidney disease quality of life questionnaire. Then they were analyzed by using descriptive statistics,
independent samples t-test and paired t test.
Results: The results showed that there was a significant difference between the intervention and
control groups in the mean quality of life after the intervention in the aspects of diseases symptoms,
the quality of social interactions, encouraging the dialysis unit staff, physical role, pain and emotional
role (p <0.05), but there was no significant difference in the other aspects of quality of life.
Conclusion: The results of this study showed the effectiveness of self-management programs on some
aspects of the quality of life in hemodialysis patients. Due to the shortage of nursing staff, and the
importance of participating patients in the management of chronic diseases, developing selfmanagement programs can be an alternative to the traditional training methods as well as the
mentioned challenges.