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Pain Medicine 2017
October 19-20, 2017
Volume 6, Issue 6 (Suppl)
J Pain Relief, an open access journal
ISSN: 2167-0846
October 19-20, 2017 San Francisco, USA
4
th
International Conference on
Pain Medicine
Effectiveness of a self-management program for joint protection and physical activity for patients with
rheumatoid arthritis: A pilot study
Su Hui Chen
and
Jung Hua Shao
Chang Gung University, Taiwan
Background:
Rheumatoid arthritis is a persistent systemic disease. Self-management skills are important for this patient population;
however, a comprehensive rheumatoid arthritis self-management program for patients’ day-to-day joint protection and physical
activity is limited in Chinese society.
Objectives:
The aim of the study was to evaluate self-management for rheumatoid arthritis patients, which focused on joint protection
and improving physical activity.
Method:
A pilot study with a pretest-posttest design was conducted with 32 adult rheumatoid arthritis patients at a medical center
in northern Taiwan from January to July of 2016. Participants received a 6-week intervention (n=15) or usual care (n=17). Measures,
at baseline and 12-weeks (outcome), included disease activity, arthritis self-efficacy, quality of life, and rheumatoid arthritis self-
management behavior. Participant satisfaction and recommendations regarding the program were also collected. Analysis employed
the Mann-Whitney U test.
Results:
Outcomes for the intervention group improved significantly for most variables. However, only rheumatoid arthritis self-
management behavior was significantly better for the intervention group compared to controls (p<.05). The intervention group
evaluated the program as satisfactory or very satisfactory; home visits and phone calls scored highest.
Discussion:
The self-management program is a feasible means of improving rheumatoid arthritis patients’ self-management behavior.
A trusting relationship with the researcher was important for home visits, and phone calls were helpful as reminders. These findings
will be incorporated in a large-scale study for further analysis of improving outcomes of persons with rheumatoid arthritis.
sophee@mail.cgust.edu.twJ Pain Relief 2017, 6:6 (Suppl)
DOI: 10.4172/2167-0846-C1-018