Self-care agency in persons with rheumatoid arthritis

Using a framework based on Orem's self-care deficit theory, five hypotheses related to conditioning factors in self-care agency were tested. The study sample consisted of 60 outpatients with a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis in a large research hospital. Patients completed the Exercise of Self-Care Agency instrument and the Health Assessment Questionnaire; a physician rated their arthritis severity. Twenty percent of subjects had high scores on self-care agency, 63% had average scores, and 16% had low scores. The conditioning factor of age was not related to self-care agency. However, education and the duration of illness were related to self-care agency in this group of persons with rheumatoid arthritis.