The Effect of Pain on Self-Esteem and Self-Care Agency in Hysterectomy Patients

Objective: The study aimed to determine the effect of pain on self-esteem and self-care agency in patients with hysterectomy. Materials and Methods: A total of 486 female patients who underwent hysterectomy were included in this cross-sectional study. Patient Identification Form, Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale, Self-Care Agency Scale and VAS were used to collect data. Since the patients experienced severe pain on the 1st postoperative day and their communication could not be maintained in a healthy manner, the data were collected face-to-face in the patient's room on the 2nd postoperative day. The data were analyzed in SPSS 23.0 using descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. Results: The mean scores of the patients the pain, self-care agency, and self-esteem levels were 3.58 ± 1.42, 117.40 ± 26.67, and 11.74 ± 2.99, respectively. A negative correlation was found between postoperative pain and self-care agency, self-esteem scores, while a positive correlation between self-care agency and self-esteem scores. Conclusion: High postoperative pain is negatively correlated with self-care agency and self-esteem in patients with hysterectomy. Self-esteem increase when self-care agency increase in patients with hysterectomy.