The over time development of chronic illness self-management patterns: a longitudinal qualitative study
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: There currently exists a vast amount of literature concerning chronic illness self-management, however the developmental patterns and sustainability of self-management over time remain largely unknown. This paper aims to describe the patterns by which different chronic illness self-management behaviors develop and are maintained over time. METHOD: Twenty-one individuals newly diagnosed with chronic illnesses (e.g., diabetes, rheumatism, ischemic heart disease, multiple sclerosis, chronic renal disease, inflammatory bowel disease) were repeatedly interviewed over two-and-a-half years. The interviews were conducted in Sweden from 2006 to 2008. A total of 81 narrative interviews were analyzed with an interpretive description approach. RESULTS: The participants' self-management behaviors could be described in four different developmental patterns: consistent, episodic, on demand, and transitional. The developmental patterns were related to specific self-management behaviors. Most participants took long-term medications in a consistent pattern, whereas exercise was often performed according to an episodic pattern. Participants managed health crises (e.g., angina, pain episodes) according to an on demand pattern and everyday changes due to illness (e.g., adaptation of work and household activities) according to a transitional pattern. All of the participants used more than one self-management pattern. CONCLUSION: The findings show that self-management does not develop as one uniform pattern. Instead different self-management behaviors are enacted in different patterns. Therefore, it is likely that self-management activities require support strategies tailored to each behavior's developmental pattern.
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Qualitative work demonstrates how self-management needs change with time, particularly once clients return home and the focus on medical management diminishes.
“Qualitative work by Satink et al [80], Audulv et al [81], Audulv [82], and others demonstrates how self-management needs change with time, particularly once clients return home and the focus on medical management diminishes.”
From Features of Structured, One-to-One Videoconference Interventions That Actively Engage People in the Management of Their Chronic Conditions: Scoping Review (2025) · cites this paper as [82]
The Results (A transitional self-management pattern; page not supplied) describe participants’ needs and self-management focus changing over time. The paper does not establish that this change occurs particularly after clients return home or that medical management then diminishes; those qualifications are not supported by the cited passages. (LLM, conf=0.86)
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“Qualitative work by Satink et al [80], Audulv et al [81], Audulv [82], and others demonstrates how self-management needs change with time, particularly once clients return home and the focus on medical management diminishes.”
- Authors
- Audulv, Å.
- Affiliations
- Mid Sweden University (SE)
- Corresponding author
- Audulv, Åsa
- ORCID
- Audulv, Åsa
- Venue
- BMC Public Health
- Published
- 2013-05-07
- Volume
- 13
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 452-452
- ISSN
- 1471-2458 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC3649883
- OpenAlex
- W2123330798
- Cited by
- 119
- References
- 47
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 2
- FWCI
- 6.29
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- BMC Public Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Diva portal (Dalarna University Library) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- KTH Publication Database DiVA (KTH Royal Institute of Technology) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Mittuniversitetet
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes Management and Education
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Chronic Disease Management Strategies
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Pharmacy › Nursing care and research
- Keywords
- chronic disease self-management, medication adherence, exercise behavior, health crisis, adaptation to illness, diabetes mellitus, multiple sclerosis, ischemic heart disease, chronic kidney disease, inflammatory bowel disease
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aged, Chronic Disease, Continuity of Patient Care, Female, Humans, Interviews as Topic, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Middle Aged, Self Care, Sweden, Time Factors, Health Behavior, Qualitative Research
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