The Effect of Self-care Educational Program and Remote Monitoring on Self-efficacy and Postoperative Outcomes in Patients with Retinal Detachment

Abstract

Background: Retinal detachment is an ophthalmic emergency that often leads to vision loss, with patients facing challenges in recognizing symptoms and understanding essential postoperative care to prevent complications and safeguard the other eye. Therefore, patient self-care and its monitoring are necessary to create self-efficacy as one of the basic components in post-surgery management.Aim: The present study was conducted with aim to investigate the effect of a self-care educational program and remote monitoring on self-efficacy and postoperative outcomes in patients with retinal detachment.Method: This semi-experimental study was conducted on 70 patients who were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group, with 35 patients in each group. After the surgery, the subjects of the intervention group received in-person education about a self-care program and were followed up remotely through WhatsApp upon discharge. The Perceived Health Competence Questionnaire was used to assess self-efficacy before the intervention, one week, and one month after the surgery for both groups.Results: The analysis found no significant difference in the mean perceived health competence scores between the intervention and control groups over the study period (p=0.718).Implications for Practice: Practitioners should consider developing more targeted and interactive educational interventions, as well as implementing more rigorous follow-up protocols to enhance patient self-management and prevent complications.