The role of support groups in raising the self-concept of people affectd by leprosy: an evaluation study in Ethiopia

A pre-tesed structured interview was administered to a sample of twentyfour pairs of leprosy affected self-care group members and matched subjects around Shashemene, to evaluate any perceived changes regarding themselves, and their disease resulting from membership of the self-care leprosy control programme, undertaken by All Africa Leprosy, Tuberculosis an Rehabilitaion Training Centre (ALERT). Besides this, a case study and observation reports were used, to complement the quantitative information from an interview questionnaire. The 24 self-care members perceived themselves and their ulcer problem more modestly than their counterparts not in the programme. The difference between the mean 'self-concept sum scores' was significant (t=10.19, P<0.005 df=46, and x=30.083, P<0.001 respectively). Case and observation reports qualified this finding, indicating that the health promotion activity undertaken by the self-care programme has raised the clients' sense of worth and self-esteem. Further recommendations have been given for conducting studies of a similar nature in the future.