CORRELATION BETWEEN CHRONIC WOUNDS AND QUALITY OF LIFE AMONG SURGICAL PATIENTS IN IFE/IJESA COMMUNITIES OF OSUN STATE

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Date
2015
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Abstract
Chronic Wounds (CW) are a common problem that affects a large portion of the populace, all over the world. While such wounds are treated through various modalities available, their impact on the psychological and mental wellbeing of such patients is often overlooked. This research examined the quality of life status in surgical patients with CW; determined the level of chronicity of these wounds; identified the factors responsible for the chronicity; and determined the effects of CW on the mental health of these patients. This was with a view to determining the correlation between chronic wounds and quality of life among surgical patients in Ife/Ijesa communities of Osun state. A descriptive design was adopted for the study; consecutive non-probability sampling method was used to select sixty (60) patients with CW. Selection was done from four selected hospitals within the study area. Ethical approval was obtained from Ethics and Research Committee, OAUTHC, Ile-Ife. Inclusion criteria are adult patients above eighteen years with wounds longer than three months in the selected hospitals. Patients with memory deficit and those who did not consent were excluded. Instrument used was a semi-structured interviewer administered questionnaire and an interview guide. The questionnaire comprises three sections: Section A are questions on socio demographic data, section B questions were adapted from Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) to determine the effects of chronic wounds on mental health, while section C explored the quality of life status of patients with CW; adapted from WHO (FIVE) Well-Being Index and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). The Interview Guide was used to collect qualitative data on factors responsible for chronic wounds. A pilot study was conducted at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital (LAUTECH), Osogbo. Data collected were analysed using appropriate descriptive and inferential statistics. Results revealed that, the average age of respondents was 48.3 years (Range = 18-80 years). Male: female ratio was 33:27 and 71.7% were married. 96% were Yoruba and 40% were traders. The presence of chronic wounds adversely affected the quality of life (R= -.288, P = 0.025). The average duration of the wounds was 23.2 months. (Range = 3 - 240 months). Trauma in its various forms was the commonest cause of CW followed by infection and there was no relationship between duration of wounds and gender. Only 18.3% were accessing care from hospital alone, others were receiving care from other places and applying other agents responsible for chronicity. Thirty-five (58.3%) enjoyed “better wellbeing” and 25(41.7%) had low mood and likely depression. Only 31.7% and 15% of the respondents were free of anxiety and depression respectively. Others had varying degrees of abnormality. Only 9 (15%) of the respondents had scores considered normal, others had varying degrees of abnormality in their mental health. The conclusion is that, CW is associated with poorer health related quality of life. This should therefore be put into perspective in the care of patients with CW so as to have improved outcomes.
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xiii, 95p
Keywords
Chronic wound, surgical patient, memory deficit, semi-structured interviewer, hospital Anxiety, depression Scale
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