Abstract

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of 5 weeks self-help management program developed by Kim et al. (2000-b) and reinforced with music therapy for post stroke patients.
METHOD
This was pre-experimental study and the subjects were 14 post stroke hemiplegic patients at home who were registered at the Gunsan Health Center. The program was applied for five weeks and two hours for each session composed of the preparation step, the main step and the finishing step. The contents of the program were ROM exercise, daily activity training, risk factors and aftereffects, nutrition management and stress management. To collect data, all subjects were questioned before and after the application of the program. Collected data were analyzed through frequencies, percentages, Wilcoxen signed rank test and Cronbach's alpha using SPSS-WIN program.
RESULT
After the application of the self-help management program, a statistically significant increase was observed in the subjects' ability to perform activities of daily living (p=.039), ability to perform instrumental activities of daily living (p=.005), self-efficacy (p=.001), self-care behavior (p=.001) and quality of life (p=.001), and a statistically significant decrease was observed in depression (p=.012).
CONCLUSION
The present self-help management program was found to be helpful in improving the subjects' physical and psychological functions after they were attacked by stroke, so to be an effective nursing intervention strategy for post stoke patients. Future researches need to reinforce and materialize music therapy and to develop and apply a self-help management program that includes not only post stroke patients but also their families. In addition, it is necessary to expand the scope of subjects and apply follow-up management in order to continue self-help meetings.