A Comparative Study of the Effect of Peer-led and Lecture-based Education on Health Literacy in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Abstract

Background: Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) require health literacy to manage the symptomsand problems of the disease, which improves their quality of life. Health literacy is recognized asa critical indicator of health care outcomes. This study aimed to compare the effect of peer-led andlecture-based education on health literacy in MS patients.Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on MS patients in Jahrom from December2018 to November 2019. 90 patients were selected using convenience sampling and then assigned intocontrol (n=45) and intervention groups (n=45). While routine education was presented to patients inthe control group, peer education intervention was held for the intervention group. The number ofsessions held for both groups was six sessions (one session per week). For data collection, MS healthliteracy questionnaire (MSHLQ) was used before and one month after the intervention in both groups.Data were analyzed through SPSS version 21 using Chi-square, Fisher’s exact test and t-test. Thesignificance level was considered p <0.05.Results: Paired t-test showed that there was a significant difference between the mean of health literacyin the intervention group before and after the intervention (P=0.001), while this difference was notobserved in the control group (P=0.39). Independent t-test showed a significant difference in the meanof health literacy between the intervention and control groups after the intervention (P=0.001).Conclusion: The results showed that peer group experiences were more effective than lecture-basededucation in improving health literacy. It can be beneficial to employ as an educative-supportiveapproach in MS patients.

Keywords

• education
• health literacy
• lecture
• multiple sclerosis
• peer group