Coping methods of patients with inflammatory bowel disease and prediction of perceived health, functional status, and well-being.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is chronic, incurable, and requires that affected patients cope with their condition on a constant basis. The purpose of this descriptive study was to predict the perceived health, functioning, and well-being among patients with IBD through the use and effectiveness of various coping methods. Forty-six patients with IBD completed the Jalowiec Coping Scale, the Health Status Questionnaire, and a demographic questionnaire. Results indicate that use of evasive, fatalistic, and emotive coping methods along with optimistic coping effectiveness were significantly inversely correlated with health perception and well-being. No coping effectiveness variables and only the use of evasive, fatalistic, and supportive coping methods were significantly inversely correlated with perceived functioning. Regression analysis indicated that 20% of the variance in health perception could be predicted from the use of emotive coping method. Fatalistic coping method use explained 24% of the variance in perceived functioning. Finally, 51% of the variability in perceived well-being could be predicted from the use of fatalistic coping method and the effectiveness of optimistic method. These findings indicate that emotion-focused coping methods are important predictors of the health, functioning, and well-being perceptions of patients with IBD.