Empowering knowledge and its connection to health-related quality of life : a cross-cultural study

Aims Assess the association between patient education (i.e. empowering knowledge) and preoperative health-related quality of life, 6 months postoperative health-related quality of life, and the increase in health-related quality of life in osteoarthritis patients who underwent total hip or total knee arthroplasty. Method This is a cross-cultural comparative follow-up study using structured instruments to measure the difference between expected and received patient education and self-reported health-related quality of life (EQ-5D) in Finland, Greece, Iceland, Spain and Sweden. Results The health-related quality of life was significantly increased 6 months postoperatively in all countries due to the arthroplasties. In the total sample, higher levels of empowering knowledge were associated with a higher health-related quality of life, both pre- and postoperatively, but not with a higher increase in health-related quality of life. On the national level, postoperative health-related quality of life was associated with higher levels of empowering knowledge in Finland, Iceland and Sweden. The increase in health-related quality of life was associated with levels of empowering knowledge for Greece. Conclusions Overall, it can be concluded that the level of empowering knowledge was associated with high postoperative health-related quality of life in the total sample, even though there is some variation in the results per country.
Funding agencies: Finland-University of Turku; Academy of Finland; Finnish Association of Nursing Research; Finnish Foundation of Nursing Education; EVO funds at the Intermunicipal Hospital District of Southwest Finland; Spain-Colegio Oficial de Enfermeria de Barcelona; Sw
EEPO