PROMOTING WOMENS UROLOGIC SELF-CARE - 5 SINGLE-CASE REPLICATIONS

With increasing demands for greater cost-effectiveness and the recogni tion of the importance of health self-care behaviors, social work inte rventions need to be developed that reach more individuals and reach m edical treatment arenas where, previously traditional medical care was the only option. This article describes an example of intervention re search (codeveloped by a social worker) designed to improve urologic s elf-care for women presenting to a urology clinic with frequency-urgen cy syndrome. Five women kept daily diary data on their urinary frequen cy and then received a pamphlet of behavioral recommendations develope d from the Health Belief Model, Self-Efficacy Theory, the Theory of Re asoned Action and other compliance-enhancement strategies. Three women showed improvement in their frequency of urination, one showed improv ement in her unpleasant urges, and one showed no change in either self -care behaviors or clinical outcome. Implications for future research are discussed.