The Effect of Health Literacy Counselling on Self-Care in Women after Mastectomy: a Randomized Clinical Trial

Introduction: Breast cancer has a high prevalence, constituting a major cause of mortality in women around the world. Health literacy has a vital role in the self-care of chronic diseases such as cancer and is an essential element in the ability of each person to engage with health promotion. The aim of this study was to determine effect of health literacy counselling on self-care in women after mastectomy. Methods: This study is a randomized, controlled, clinical trial carried out on 72 women with breast cancer after mastectomy in Fars province. The eligible women entered the study using convenience sampling and were then divided into an intervention and a control group through randomized blocks of four. Health literacy questionnaire and self-care questionnaire were distributed among the participants before, immediately after and three weeks following the intervention. Data analysis was performed in SPSS ver.13. Results: The results showed no significant differences between the two groups in terms of their health literacy and self-care scores before the intervention (P=0.299 and 0.059). A comparison of the mean values showed a greater increase in the mean score of health literacy and score of self-care immediately and three weeks after the intervention in the intervention group compared to the control group. Also, the mean score of the dimensions of self-care in chemotherapy increased over time in the intervention group. Conclusion: The findings of this study confirm the higher effectiveness of counseling with a health literacy approach on overall self-care in chemotherapy and all its dimensions.