Effects of provision and receipt of social support on adjustment to laparoscopic radical prostatectomy
Titel:
Effects of provision and receipt of social support on adjustment to laparoscopic radical prostatectomy
Auteur:
Scholz, Urte Knoll, Nina Roigas, Jan Gralla, Oliver
Verschenen in:
Anxiety, stress and coping
Paginering:
Jaargang 21 (2008) nr. 3 pagina's 227-241
Jaar:
2008-07
Inhoud:
Radical prostatectomy has a negative impact on prostate cancer patients' health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Social support may help patients adjust to their situation after surgery. We investigated patients' accounts of received social support as well as their spouses' accounts of provided social support as predictors of patients' HRQoL 6 months after surgery. Moreover, we tested whether patients with lower HRQoL at 2 weeks after surgery had the most benefit from spousal support. A total of 77 patients (M=61.57 years, SD=6.03) and their spouses (M=58.46 years, SD=7.52) completed questionnaires at 2 weeks and 6 months after laparoscopic radical prostatectomy. Received social support, spousal provided social support, and HRQoL were assessed 2 weeks after surgery, and HRQoL was assessed again 6 months later. Patients with lower HRQoL at 2 weeks after surgery benefited more from the receipt and their partners' provision of support in terms of HRQoL 6 months later than patients with a higher HRQoL at the beginning. Assessing patients' HRQoL might be one method to identify those individuals who are in special need of support from their spouses.