The role of nurse–patient mutuality on self‐care behaviours in patients with chronic illness

AbstractAimTo examine the role of nurse–patient mutuality on three self‐care behaviours in chronic illness patients.DesignA cross‐sectional multi‐centre study was conducted.MethodsMutuality was measured with the Nurse–Patient Mutuality in Chronic Illness scale which has the dimensions of developing and going beyond, being a point of reference and deciding and sharing care, and self‐care was measured with the Self‐care of Chronic Illness Inventory (SC‐CII). Multivariable linear regression analyses were used to assess the contribution of three dimensions of mutuality on self‐care maintenance, monitoring and management behaviours controlling for patient gender, age, education, number of medications, and presence of a family caregiver.ResultsThe sample included 465 inpatients and outpatients with at least one chronic illness. The three dimensions of mutuality had different roles in their influence on the three dimensions of self‐care. Developing and going beyond was significantly associated with self‐care maintenance and self‐care monitoring behaviours. Point of reference was significantly associated with self‐care maintenance behaviour. Deciding and sharing care was significantly associated with self‐care monitoring and self‐care management behaviours.ConclusionThe mutuality between nurse and patient may be a novel area of research to support and improve patient self‐care behaviours with implications for clinical practice and education.Implication for Profession and Patient CareMutuality between nurse and patient increases patient engagement, symptom recognition, decision‐making process and patient‐centred approach favouring the development of self‐care behaviours.ImpactMutuality between nurse and patient is a new concept and its association with the patient outcomes could bring relevance to the nursing profession. Self‐care behaviours are important in the management of chronic diseases, but are difficult to perform. Mutuality between nurse and patient influences the three different behaviours of self‐care in chronic illness, for this reason it is important to increase the level of mutuality in this dyad.Reporting MethodSTROBE checklist for cross‐sectional studies was followed in this study.Patient or Public ContributionPatients were involved in the sample of the study.