Developing a wellness program for people with multiple sclerosis: description and initial results

Because multiple sclerosis (MS) is a multidimensional chronic disease, effective management of the illness requires a multidimensional approach. We describe a wellness program that was designed to facilitate positive health choices throughout the course of MS and present initial data analyses. We hypothesized that over the course of the program, participants would demonstrate improvement in the domains assessed. The wellness program included educational sessions in physical, mental, social, intellectual, and spiritual domains specifically targeting improved self-efficacy, physical functioning, coping skills, symptom management, and nutrition. An outcomes data collection software program was adapted to facilitate real-time patient self-report and clinician entry data collection for many domains throughout the wellness program. Initial assessment of serial measures (intake to discharge) from 65 people with MS showed improvement in several domains, including functional status (P < .05), fatigue (P < .05), fear-avoidance beliefs regarding physical activities (P < .05), depression (P < .05), somatization (P < .05), and pain (P < .05). In addition, using a model of risk for interpersonal distress, patients whose risk of elevated depression and anxiety decreased over the course of the program reported greater gains in functional status (P < .05). The results suggest possible future treatment strategies and indicate strengths and weaknesses of the wellness program, which are being used to improve the program.