Uncertainty in Elderly Women with Osteoarthritis: Relationship to Pain, Self-care Agency and Health Conservation

Nam, Jiran; Sung, Kiwol

doi:2014.16.3.201

J Korean Gerontol Nurs > Volume 16(3):2014 > Article

Original Article


J Korean Gerontol Nurs. 2014 Dec;16(3):201-209. Korean. Published online Dec 31, 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.17079/jkgn.2014.16.3.201
© 2014 Korean Gerontological Nursing Society


Uncertainty in Elderly Women with Osteoarthritis: Relationship to Pain, Self-care Agency and Health Conservation
Jiran Nam,^*¹and Kiwol Sung²
¹Department of Nursing, Yong-Nam Foreign Language College, Gyeongsan, Korea.
²College of Nursing, Catholic University of Daegu, Daegu, Korea.
^*Corresponding author: Nam, Jiran. Department of Nursing, Yong-Nam Foreign Language College, 780-9 Namcheon-ro, Namcheon-myeon, Gyeongsan 712-717, Korea. Tel: +82-53-810-0168, Fax: +82-53-810-7779, Email: sik4300@hanmail.net

Received February 26, 2014; Revised July 12, 2014; Accepted August 21, 2014.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of uncertainty to pain, self-care agency and health conservation and to identify factors affecting uncertainty in elderly women with osteoarthritis. Methods Participants, 156 women aged 65 years or older, were outpatients at A orthopedic clinic in D city and were diagnosed with osteoarthritis. Data were collected using the Visual Analogue Scale (pain), Self-As-Carer Inventory (Geden & Taylor, 1988), Health Conservation Scale (Sung, 2005a) and Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale (Mishel, 1988) and analyzed using t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson's correlation, and stepwise multiple regression. Results Uncertainty was positively correlated with the degree of pain and negatively correlated with self-care agency and health conservation in elderly women with osteoarthritis. Health conservation was the strongest predictor (β=-.28) of uncertainty in elderly women with osteoarthritis, followed by assistance from spouse (β=-.25) and monthly allowance (β=-.24). These variables accounted for 29% of the total variance in uncertainty. Conclusion Findings from the study suggest the need to develop and utilize nursing interventions targeting improvements in health conservation to reduce uncertainty in elderly women with osteoarthritis.

Keywords: Uncertainty, Pain, Self-care, Health.

Tables


	Table 1 Differences in Uncertainty according to General Characteristics of Participants (N=156)


	Table 2 Differences in Uncertainty according to Health Condition of Participants (N=156)


	Table 3 Pain, Self-care Agency, Health Conservation and Uncertainty in Elderly Women with Osteoarthritis (N=156)


	Table 4 Correlations among Pain, Self-care Agency, Health Conservation and Uncertainty in Elderly Women with Osteoarthritis (N=156)


	Table 5 Predictors on Uncertainty in Elderly Women with Osteoarthritis (N=156)

References


1.	Baker K, McAlindon T. Exercise for knee osteoarthritis. Curr Opin Rheumatol 2000;12(5):456–463.

2.	Cho OH. Uncertainty, anxiety and coping with mastectomy for breast cancer. J Korean Acad Nurs 2000;30(4):1006–1017.

3.	Chung CW, Kim MJ, Rhee MH, Do G. Functional status and psychosocial adjustment in gynecologic cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Korean J Women Health Nurs 2005;11(1):58–66.

4.	Cook C, Pietrobon R, Hegedus E. Osteoarthritis and the impact on quality of life health indicators. Rheumatol Int 2007;27(4):315–321.

5.	Geden E, Taylor S. Self-as carer: A preliminary evaluation. In Proceedings of seventh annual nursing research conference (abstract, p. 7). Columbia, MO: University of Missouri-Columbia School of Nursing; 1988.

6.	Hwang JH, Lee SO, Kim K. Effects of thermotherapy combined with aromatherapy on pain, flexibility, sleep, and depression in elderly women with osteoarthritis. J Muscle Joint Health 2011;18(2):192–202.

7.	Hwang MH, Doh N. A study of perceived health status, social support and self care agency of the aged. J Kyungpook Nurs Sci 2000;4(1):43–58.

8.	Kim YJ. A study on uncertainty and general wellbeing of hemodialysis patients. Seoul: Konkuk University; 2009. Unpublished master's thesis

9.	Lee YJ, Ham EM, Kim S. A correlational study on uncertainty, coping and depression of cancer patients. J Korean Acad Nurs 2001;31(2):244–256.

*10.*	Ministry of Health and Welfare. Senior Survey 2011. 2012Retrieved December 20, 2013 from http://stat.mw.go.kr/front/statData/publicationView.jsp?menuId=41&bbsSeq=7&nttSeq=20275&searchKey=&searchWord=&nPage=1&topSelect

*11.*	Mishel MH. Reconceptualization of the uncertainty in illness theory. J Nurs Scholarsh 1990;22(4):256–262.

*12.*	Moser DK, Watkins F. Conceptualizing self-care in heart failure: A life course model of patient characteristics. J Cardiovasc Nurs 2008;23(3):205–218.

*13.*	Mun YS. The correlation among uncertainty, self care agency and quality of life in elderly patients underwent percutaneous coronary intervention. Busan: Catholic University of Pusan; 2012. Unpublished master's thesis

*14.*	Nam YH, Nam JR. A study of the factors affecting the subjective health status of elderly people in Korea. Korean J Fam Welf 2011;16(4):145–162.

*15.*	Oh HS. Theory construction in nursing of uncertainty. J Korean Acad Adult Nurs 2001;13(2):200–208.

*16.*	Oh MS. The correlation between self-care agency and life satisfaction among elderly in Iksan city. Seoul: Hanyang University; 2009. Unpublished master's thesis

*17.*	Oh WO, Kim EJ. Factors influencing health conservation among elders. J Korean Acad Fundam Nurs 2009;16(2):134–143.

*18.*	Park SY, Son JT, Park DH, Lee KH, Kim JS. Effects of self help program for pain, ADL, exercise selfefficacy and knowledge about arthritis in patients with osteoarthritis. J Rheumatol Health 2004;11(1):31–41.

*19.*	Sohng KY, Kang SS, Yoo YS. A study of pain, self-esteem, perceived health status and self-efficacy in patients with chronic arthritis. J Korean Acad Public Health Nurs 2001;15(1):111–124.

*20.*	So HS. Testing construct validity of Self-As-Carer Inventory and its predictors. J Korean Acad Adult Nurs 1992;4(2):147–161.

*21.*	Suh KS, Lee YJ. The effects of self-esteem, life satisfaction, and social participation desire on the social participation of the elderly. J Soc Issues 2012;23(2):97–124.

*22.*	Sung KW. Scale development on health conservation of the institutionalized elderly. J Korean Acad Nurs 2005;35(1):113–124.

*23.*	Sung KW. Comparison of health conservation for elders in assisted living facilities and nursing homes. J Korean Acad Nurs 2005;35(7):1379–1389.

*24.*	Yeom HE. Factors related to negative beliefs about symptom management and their influence on self-efficacy in community-dwelling older women. J Korean Gerontol Nurs 2013;15(1):11–20.

*25.*	Yoo KH. A study on the relationship between uncertainty and pain in rheumatoid arthritis patients. J Soonchunhyang Med Sci 2004;10(3):2003–2008.