The Effect of Self Care Education based on Orem’s Theory on Quality of Life of Parents of Children with Nephrotic Syndrome

Introduction: Complications of nephrotic syndrome reduce quality of life in parents. Self-care education is associated with the possibility of reducing mortality and improving disease outcome. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of self-care education on quality of life of parents of children with nephrotic syndrome. Methods: In this randomized clinical trial study, 60 children aged 7-18 years with nephrotic syndrome were randomly divided into two equal groups of test and control. Data collection tools were demographic information form and World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire. The intervention group received 2 sessions of 60 minutes of self-care training based on Orem theory. The control group did not receive any training. The results of the intervention were analyzed after 4 weeks by SPSS 23 software. Results: The mean scores of quality of life in the experimental and control groups before the intervention were 74/3 ± 36/51  and52/4 ± 46/51 , respectively (P>0.05 ), No significant difference was observed between the two groups. One month after the intervention, it was  26/3 ± 90/99 in the experimental group and 27/9 ± 20/51 in the control group, which Significant difference  was observed between the two groups (P<0.05). Conclusion: Self care education based on Orem's theory is effective in increasing the quality of life of parents of children with nephrotic syndrome which can be used as a complementary and effective method to improve that in parents of this group of patients.