Affiliation:
1. School of Nursing Dalian Medical University Dalian China
Abstract
AbstractAimTo investigate the structural relationships among perceived stress (PS), positive psychological capital (PsyCap) and health literacy (HL) in patients with multiple chronic conditions (MCC) and construct a model to explore the relationships of PS and PsyCap on HL.BackgroundHL is critical in the rehabilitation and management of patients with MCC. Extensive understanding of the relationships between research variables can help nursing staff to implement effective programmes that improve the level of HL of patients. However, currently there is no research that has evaluated the structural relationships among these variables using a single model.MethodsThis study adhered to the STROBE guidelines for reporting cross‐sectional studies. The Health Literacy Scale for Chronic Patients, Chinese Perceived Stress Scale (CPSS) and Positive Psychological Capital Questionnaire were used to assess HL, PS and PsyCap, respectively. Questionnaires were distributed to 317 patients with MCC attending a tertiary general care hospital in China from February to May 2023, using convenience sampling approach. Structural equation modelling was used to validate the proposed model.ResultsThe findings showed that PS has a negative relationship with HL and PsyCap. PS was indirectly associated with HL through PsyCap. The results indicated that PsyCap was positively associated with HL. The PS and PsyCap explained 64% of the variance in HL.ConclusionsThe findings showed that the proposed model had high validity and structural relationships between chosen variables were observed for MCC patients.Relevance to Clinical PracticeThese results may help nursing staff develop strategies to improve the HL of patients with MCC, which should focus on reducing PS and enhancing PsyCap to improve HL. Nursing staff can provide targeted psychological counselling and health guidance for patients to alleviate negative emotions and further promote their HL.Patient or Public ContributionParticipate in research and fill out questionnaires.