The Journal of

Introduction: End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) is regarded as one of the most prevalent diseases in all countries of the world. Self-care is one of the important aspects in treatment of hemodialysis patients. Therefore, self- care training demands to be taken into consideration in the patients' health programs in the hospitals. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of self-care behavior training as well as its benefits and barriers on patients undergoing hemodialysis.

Methods: In this experimental study, 40 cases and 40 controls were selected out of hemodialysis patients via random sampling method in 2013, who were hospitalized in two hospitals of Imam Reza in Amol and Imam khomeini in Noor that are dependent on Mazandaran University of Medical sciences. The intervention group patients were trained in three sessions of 25-30 minutes. The study data were collected before and after the intervention using the questionnaires and interview. Moreover, SPSS software (ver.18) was applied to analyze the study data via using correlation coefficient, regression, Anova analysis and T-test.

Results: After the training intervention, hemodialysis self-care scores as well as self-care benefits significantly increased, whereas the self-care constraints decreased significantly in the intervention group. However, the control group revealed no significant changes in regard with these variables.

Conclusion: The study findings demonstrated that the training program implemented in this study improved the patients' self- care behaviors and created a positive perception of self- care benefits and barriers. As a result, doctors and nurses in dialysis wards, utilizing this training procedure, can play an effective role in improving the patients' self-care behaviors, promoting their health, as well as increasing their quality and length of life.