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Christopher Fowler, MSN, RN, CS, ACNP

Christopher Fowler, MSN, RN, CS, ACNP, is Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, The Liver Institute at Methodist Dallas Medical Center, Dallas, TX, and doctoral candidate, University of Cincinnati College of Nursing, Cincinnati, OH. He was Clinical Instructor, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, at the time this research was conducted.

Linda S. Baas, PhD, RN, CS, ACNP

Linda S. Baas, PhD, RN, CS, ACNP, is Professor and Director of Acute Care Graduate Program, University of Cincinnati College of Nursing, Cincinnati, OH. She is also a nurse practitioner at the University Hospital Heart Failure Center.

A sample of patients with chronic kidney disease on maintenance hemodialysis participated in a study to explore the relationship between illness perception and quality of life. Illness perception was examined based on the Common-Sense Model of Illness as described by Leventhal. Forty-two participants completed the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R), the Index of Wellbeing (IWB) and a brief demographic form. All of the subscales of the IPQ-R and the IWB demonstrated adequate reliability (alpha levels >.70) except for the treatment control subscale (alpha = .46). More perceived consequences of kidney disease and higher scores on the emotional representation scale were negatively correlated with scores on the IWB. Future research is needed to assess the influence of factors such as coping strategies on illness representations and on well-being. Nephrology nurses are in an optimal position to identify the illness perceptions of patients on chronic hemodialysis and can introduce specific coping mechanisms to enhance overall well-being. As well, nephrology nurses can function as part of the overall health care team to identify the resources available to minimize the perceived consequences of chronic kidney disease.