CN43 Effect of self-care teaching module on radiation- induced acute side effects and clinical outcomes for head and neck cancer patients

Abstract

The major concern of health care professionals regarding the value of teaching self-care for management of acute side effects of radiation therapy of head and neck cancer (HNC) patients is the improvement of their clinical outcomes. Aim: This quasi-experimental randomized controlled study design aimed to evaluate the effect of self-care teaching module on radiation-induced acute side effects and clinical outcomes in HNC patient. A random sample of (50) adult patients with HNC undergoing recent radiation therapy were selected. All subjects of the current study were meeting all inclusion criteria. Subjects were divided into two groups; each group consisted of 25 patients. Group I; control group did not receive self-care teaching module about acute side effect whereas the self-care teaching module was provided by the researcher to Group II. Three tools were utilized to collect data pertinent to the study. These tools were structured patient assessment interview questionnaire. Tool (II) included Modified Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance scale (ECOG). Tool (III) was Self-care questionnaire. There was improvement of mean scores regarding change of quality grade of functional ability of the study group II one and three months after receiving self-care teaching module with very high statistical significance difference. Also, the occurrence and severity of acute side effects was improved in the study group II compared to control group I. Self-care teaching module on radiation induced acute side effects had an effect on decreasing the occurrence, the severity and the distressing of these side effects in head and neck cancer patients.