Received Knowledge And Empowerment Among Patients With Chronic Disease Admitted In A Secondary Hospital In Koronadal City, Philippines

Abstract

World Health Organization reported that there are still regional and socioeconomic disparities in availability of health services throughout the country. This may imply that patients with chronic diseases in provincial areas such as Koronadal City may have inadequate access to health services. As a third-world country with less assistance to medical expenses, providing Filipinos sufficient knowledge for them to take care of themselves properly at home is already a considerable intervention. Empowering patients will also enhance their relationship between healthcare providers as they will more likely be participative and assertive in their own health care. This study aimed to determine the relationship between the level of knowledge received by hospitalized patients and their level of empowerment. This study utilized a descriptive correlational design and data was gathered in a medical center in Koronadal City, South Cotabato using three research instruments such as the demographic data sheet, Received Knowledge of Hospital Patients (RKHP) and Health Empowerment Scale. All statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS Statistics (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) software. Majority of the participants belonged to the middle adult (40-64 years old) age group. There were more females than males in the study population. A majority were college graduates but unemployed. The mean score (±SD) in the RHKP scale was 3.20 (SD=0.57). The highest level of received knowledge was in the biophysical dimension. The mean score (±SD) in the patient empowerment scale was 3.77 (SD=0.69). The highest level of empowerment was in the meaningfulness dimension. There was a strong positive association between received knowledge of hospital patients and their level of empowerment. The study had provided evidence to support the significant relationship between received knowledge

Received Knowledge and Empowerment among Patients with Chronic Disease Admitted in a Secondary Hospital in Koronadal City, Philippines xii and level of empowerment. This implies that it is through health education and improvement of health literacy that health professionals can empower patients to maintain autonomy over their own care and apply knowledge and skills with the objective of improving their quality of life.