Health promoting behaviours of patients with arterial hypert

Introduction. Arterial hypertension is the main cause of deaths in Europe, as well as a reason for disability and clear deterioration of the quality of life of the ill. Arterial hypertension is an illness in which positive health behaviour is particularly important.

Aim. The main purpose of the work was to learn the habits of the patients suffering of arterial hypertension.

Material and methods. The researched group were patients hospitalised in 2015 at the Second Cardiologic Ward of the Polish-American Heart Clinics in Bielsko-Biała. Research referred to 117 people suffering of arterial hypertension, with the average age of 66.3 ± 10 years. The research was carried out by virtue of diagnostic opinion polling with the use of the Health Behaviour Report (IZZ) by Z. Juczyński.

Results. In the global assessment the health behaviour indicator for all of the respondents was 87.53 on the average, with 88.68 for women and 86.67 for men. Half of the respondents reflected a high level of IZZ, the average level was represented by 34.2%, and only 16.2% achieved a low IZZ level.

Conclusions.

1. Health behaviour of patients suffering of arterial hypertension is lead by the age of the patients.

2. The patients with arterial hypertension abide by the doctors’ recommendations regarding pharmacologic therapy.

3. Among non-pharmacologic methods of arterial hypertension treatment important in the opinion of the patients are prophylactic behaviours and positive mental attitude to treating the illness.

4. There is a need to educate patients with arterial hypertension with regard to non pharmacologic methods of treatment, particularly as regards proper eating habits and motivation to abide by the habits.

Nursing Topics 2015; 23 (4): 471–476