Importance of social relationships in patients with chronic respiratory diseases

Abstract

The literature lacks reports on the role of the social relationships domain (SRD) of quality of life (QoL) in shaping care for patients with chronic respiratory diseases in primary care. In this study we examined a group of 582 patients with chronic respiratory diseases and chronic non-respiratory diseases recruited from 199 primary care centers. In the patients with chronic respiratory diseases, higher SRD correlated with more frequent patient visits due to medical issue, fewer district nurse interventions over the past 12 months, less frequent hospitalizations over the past 3 years, and fewer chronic diseases. In these patients, a high SRD was most effectively created by high QoL in the Psychological, Environmental, and Physical domains, and the satisfaction with QoL. Programs for preventing a decline in SRD should include patients with low scores in the Psychological, Environmental, and Physical domains, those who show no improvement in mental or somatic well-being in the past 12 months, those with a low level of positive mental attitudes, unhealthy eating habits, and with low levels of met needs. Such programs should include older widows and widowers without permanent relationships, with only primary education, living far from a primary care center, and those whose visits were not due to a medical issue.