THE USE OF SELF-MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES BY PEOPLE WITH RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS

Objective: To investigate seven common arthritis self-management metho ds used by people with rheumatoid arthritis IRA) by studying their fre quency of use and the patients' belief in their benefits. Also to look at how people obtained information about such methods. Design: Cross- sectional survey. Subjects and setting: Forty-one people with RA atten ding a rheumatology outpatient department at a large district general hospital. Results: Twenty-three recalled receiving some self-managemen t advice from rheumatology team members, but most stated the commonest source of information was arthritis books and leaflets (n = 29), Two- thirds used technical aids and rest on a daily basis, half used exerci se and heat (half doing so daily). A quarter to a half used relaxation , joint protection and working splints (half doing so daily). Conclusi on: People with RA reported using three or four self-management method s simultaneously to help control symptoms. in the main, believing a me thod to be beneficial was strongly related to its use. However, exerci se and joint protection, whilst widely believed to be beneficial, were less used. People reported problems with knowing how to do these corr ectly, having insufficient time to practise sufficiently and difficult y in establishing habits.