Evaluation of the Usefulness of the Constipation Improvement Program Based on People-Centered Care and Health Promotion

Abstract

　This study was aimed to verify the usefulness of the “Constipation Improvement Program Based on People-Centered Care and Health Promotion”. In this program, a nurse and the target person partnered to improve constipation. Four web interviews were conducted every 2 weeks. Then, the program was structured such that the cause of the participant’s constipation could be found and self-care and maintenance of self-care were feasible for the participant. Defecation frequency, constipation symptoms, and quality-of-life (QOL) scores before and after the program were determined for 21 participants. It was found that the average number of regular stools, Constipation Assessment Scale Middle Term score, and the Japanese version of the Patient Assessment of Constipation-QOL score improved from 1.5±1.5 to 3.2±3.1, 8.5±1.9 to 5.2±2.6, and 55.3±12.5 to 43.5±14.3 (P=.005, P<.001, P<.001 respectively) . Furthermore, the urinary indoxyl sulfate level, which can be used to assess the intestinal environment, improved from 87.3±62.9 to 52.1±32.8 (P=.026) . Thus, this program improved defecation frequency, constipation symptoms, QOL, and the intestinal environment. These findings are attributable to the use of nursing skills and knowledge to improve participants’ life by addressing causal factors, such as lifestyle habits and stress. This study showed that this programs to encourage health promotion behaviors with partner nurses was very useful.