Improving the Hope and Happiness of Patients With an Ostomy

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of group cognitive therapy (GCT) on hope and happiness in patients with ostomy.A single-group before-after study.The sample comprised 30 patients living with an ostomy for at least 30 days. Their mean age was 64.5 (SD 10.5) years; most were male (66.7%, n = 20).The study setting was a large ostomy care center in the city of Kerman, located in southeastern Iran. The intervention was 12 GCT sessions, each lasted 90 minutes. Data were collected before and 1 month after GCT sessions using a questionnaire designed for purposes of this study. The questionnaire queried demographic and pertinent clinical data, and incorporated 2 validated instruments: the Miller Hope Scale and the Oxford Happiness Inventory.The mean pretest score on the Miller Hope Scale was 121.9 (SD 16.7) and the mean score on the Oxford Happiness Scale was 31.9 (SD 7.8); posttest mean scores were 180.4 (SD 12.1) and 53.4 (SD 8.3), respectively. Scores on both instruments significantly increased in patients living with an ostomy following 3 GCT sessions (P = .0001).Findings suggest that GCT enhances hope and happiness in persons living with an ostomy.