Ensuring reliability and cultural validity of the Indonesian version of the Quality Of Life Index for patients with cancer.

The objective of this study was to translate the Ferrans and Powers Quality of Life Index (QLI) into the Indonesian language, considering its cultural and functional appropriateness, and to evaluate its psychometric properties by testing the reliability and validity. A committee approach was conducted to create the Indonesian version of the QLI (QLI-Id) and cognitive interviewing with 15 patients with cancer was conducted to identify potential problems or errors in answering the QLI-Id. A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out using 236 responses to the QLI-Id questionnaire from patients with cancer; 62 of whom completed the same questionnaire twice within a 3-week interval to verify stability reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis results supported construct validity with model fit statistics for the original single-factor and four-factor structure of the QLI (corresponding to the QLI's total score and four subscale scores, respectively) with some rearrangement of the items within each subscale. Reliability for the total QLI-Id scale was supported by McDonald's Omega of 0.92 and the intraclass/intrasubject correlation coefficient at two time points of 0.86. The strong correlation between the QLI-Id total and the Satisfaction with Life Scale scores and the overall health/QOL domain of the EORTC QLQ-C30 (both r = 0.73) supported its construct validity. This study provides evidence for the reliability and validity of the QLI-Id as an instrument to measure the impact of cancer on the overall QOL of Indonesian patients.

Dhikr Therapy for Reducing Anxiety in Cancer Patients.

OBJECTIVE: Anxiety in cancer patients can affect recovery time, medication adherence, and patient quality of life. Some studies show that dhikr therapy can improve relaxation and can reduce anxiety, but research on dhikr therapy in cancer patients is still not widely done. This study aims to determine the effect of dhikr therapy on reducing anxiety in cancer patients. METHODS: This study used a quantitative method with a quasi-experimental-nonequivalent control group design. The study was conducted in April-May 2018, with respondents 20 people in the intervention group and 20 people in the control group. Dhikr therapy is given once a day in the intervention group with a minimum time of 10 min. Anxiety was measured using the Visual Analog Scale for Anxiety. The effect of dhikr therapy was measured using the Mann-Whitney and effect size (ES). RESULTS: There were a statistically significant differences in the anxiety level of patients in the intervention group and the control group, with a value of P = 0.001 (P < 0.05) and ES = 0.87 (ES > 0.5) indicating the influence of dhikr therapy in reducing patient anxiety. CONCLUSIONS: Dhikr therapy has a great effect on reducing anxiety in cancer patients.

Enhancing the quality of life for palliative care cancer patients in Indonesia through family caregivers: a pilot study of basic skills training.

BACKGROUND: Palliative care in Indonesia is problematic because of cultural and socio-economic factors. Family in Indonesia is an integral part of caregiving process in inpatient and outpatient settings. However, most families are not adequately prepared to deliver basic care for their sick family member. This research is a pilot project aiming to evaluate how basic skills training (BST) given to family caregivers could enhance the quality of life (QoL) of palliative care cancer patients in Indonesia. METHODS: The study is a prospective quantitative with pre and post-test design. Thirty family caregivers of cancer patients were trained in basic skills including showering, washing hair, assisting for fecal and urinary elimination and oral care, as well as feeding at bedside. Patients' QoL were measured at baseline and 4 weeks after training using EORTC QLQ C30. Hypothesis testing was done using related samples Wilcoxon Signed Rank. A paired t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to check in which subgroups was the intervention more significant. RESULTS: The intervention showed a significant change in patients' global health status/QoL, emotional and social functioning, pain, fatigue, dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation and financial hardship of the patients. Male patient's had a significant effect on global health status (qol) (p = 0.030); female patients had a significant effect on dyspnea (p = 0.050) and constipation (p = 0.038). Younger patients had a significant effect in global health status/QoL (p = 0.002). Patients between 45 and 54 years old had significant effect on financial issue (p = 0.039). Caregivers between 45 and 54 years old had significant effect on patients' dyspnea (p = 0.031). CONCLUSIONS: Basic skills training for family caregivers provided some changes in some aspects of QoL of palliative cancer patients. The intervention showed promises in maintaining the QoL of cancer patients considering socio-economic and cultural challenges in the provision of palliative care in Indonesia.

Family caregivers' involvement in caring for a hospitalized patient with cancer and their quality of life in a country with strong family bonds.

BACKGROUND: Being involved in caring for family members during illness is part of the Indonesian culture, even during hospitalization. It is unknown which factors influence the quality of life (QoL) of family members taking care of their loved ones. The present study aims to identify factors influencing the QoL of family caregivers of hospitalized patients with cancer in Indonesia. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was performed. Data were collected in a general hospital in Yogyakarta from September to December 2011. Family caregivers of patients with cancer were invited to participate. Regression analysis was used to determine which aspects of caring and which demographic characteristics influenced their QoL. The Caregiver QoL Index-Cancer questionnaire was used to measure the QoL. RESULTS: One hundred of 120 invited caregivers (83%) completed the questionnaire. Being involved in psychological issues in caring (ß = 0.374; p = 0.000), younger age (ß = -0.282; p = 0.003), no previous caring experience (ß = -0.301; p = 0.001), and not being the spouse (ß = -0.228; p = 0.015) negatively influenced the QoL and explained 31% of the variation (adjusted R(2) = 0.312; F = 12.24; p = 0.000). Gender, education level, and time spent on caring did not influence the QoL of family caregivers. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings identified modifiable factors such as dealing with psychological issues and lack of experience in caring that negatively influenced the QoL of family caregivers. These factors are potential targets for intervention strategies. Education and intervention programs focusing on dealing with psychological problems in cancer care might improve the QoL of both patients and their families.