Relationship of marital satisfaction and self-care behavior in people with

This study was conducted to examine the relationship of marital satisfaction and self-care behavior in people with chronic heart failure

Chronic heart failure is one of the most important problems in public health and it would impose heavy costs on society and family. Self-care plays an important role in managing heart failure and can be influenced by social support. The patients receive the highest level of social support from their families.

In this descriptive study, 251 patients were selected by convenience sampling method. The instruments were Enrich marital satisfaction questionnaire, and The European Heart Failure Self-care Behavior  (EHFSCB). Collected data were analyzed in SPSS version 16 using descriptive and inferential statistics.

The results showed that 58.8 percent of participants were male, with a mean age of 59.66 years. The mean score of marital satisfaction was 145.6±41.98. Most participants (46.9 percent) had partial marital satisfaction. The mean score of self-care was 34.5±12.24 and most participants (41.2 percent) reported good self-care. There was a statistically significant negative correlation between the marital satisfaction and self-care scores.

Due to the positive effect of self-care behaviors on marital satisfaction and because most people with chronic heart failure have partial marital satisfaction, it is recommended to study factors influencing these components. It is suggested to support and teach patients and their families in order to improve marital satisfaction and promote self-care behaviors in these patients.