Corless I.B., Nicholas P.K., Wantland D., McInerney P., Ncama B., Bhengu B., McGibbon C., Davis S.
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA, United States; University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States; University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, South Africa; University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB, Canada; Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; MGH Institute of Health Professions, CNY 36 1st Ave, Boston, MA 02129, United States
Corless, I.B., Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA, United States, MGH Institute of Health Professions, CNY 36 1st Ave, Boston, MA 02129, United States; Nicholas, P.K., Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA, United States; Wantland, D., University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States; McInerney, P., University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, South Africa; Ncama, B., University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, South Africa; Bhengu, B., University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, South Africa; McGibbon, C., Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA, United States, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB, Canada; Davis, S., Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
SETTING: Out-patient tuberculosis (TB) clinics in Durban, South Africa. OBJECTIVE: Health care provider concerns about persons with active TB defaulting on medications led to a study of adherence among persons receiving anti-tuberculosis therapy and, specifically, the relationships between meaning in life, life goals, sense of coherence, social support, symptom presence and intensity, and adherence in individuals diagnosed with TB. DESIGN: A cross-sectional, descriptive design was used to gather self-reported data from TB-infected individuals who were enrolled in out-patient clinics. Data were collected from 159 Zulu and/or English-speaking persons who agreed to participate in the study. RESULTS: A significant relationship was found between higher life goals and adherence to TB treatment (P = 0.027). Analysis of variance revealed that higher meaning in life ratings were significantly associated with older age (P = 0.007). Having children and children living in the same household were significantly associated with low meaning in life ratings (P = 0.006 and P ≤ 0.001, respectively), indicating that these individuals were more concerned about basic matters of home and sustenance. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that meaning in life and life goals may be useful for identifying individuals who will require additional support in adhering to anti-tuberculosis treatment. © 2006 The Union.