Conference Proceedings - School of Nursing & Midwifery - Trinity ...

School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin: 8 th Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference
Transforming Healthcare Through Research, Education & Technology: 7 th – 9 th November 2007
Conference Proceedings
time they had with the nurse during clinic visits. However, low
scoring areas of support received included support with education
on sleep management, energy conservation and management of
weight loss.
Findings also showed that while there were no statistically
significant differences found in relation to the demographic variables
of gender, age, genotype and risk factor and the overall satisfaction
with the support in the hepatitis C treatment clinic, there were
statistically significant correlations found between such variables
and the perceptions of support received from the nurse specialist.
Genotypes 1 indicated that they need more support than other
types in relation to information on; side effects of antiviral
treatment, quality of life while on treatment and information on
support groups available to them.
Conclusion
This study can be used to show how hepatitis C patients in Ireland
find that the support they receive from hepatitis nurse specialists is
vital in helping them to cope and comply with antiviral treatment
thus, improving their quality of life. Results of this study reinforce
the need for nurse specialists to evaluate their roles in order to help
to improve services for this unique group of patients. Furthermore,
the knowledge gained from this study can be used to design
strategies to manage patients on HCV treatment, decrease the
amount of non-compliance to treatment protocols, diagnose, treat
and prevent side effects of treatment and improve quality of life for
individuals with hepatitis C.
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