title: Meaning-in-life in nursing-home patients: a correlate with physical and emotional symptoms.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the prevalence of physical and emotional symptoms and the associations between symptoms and meaning-in-life in a cognitively intact nursing-home population.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Meaning has been found to be a strong individual predictor of successful ageing and life satisfaction as well as an important psychological variable that promotes well-being. Meaning serves as a mediating variable in both psychological and physical health.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study employed a cross-sectional design. Data were collected in 2008 and 2009 using the QLQ-C15-PAL quality-of-life questionnaire, the purpose-in-life test and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. A total of 250 cognitively intact nursing-home patients who met the inclusion criteria were approached and 202 attended.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of symptoms was fairly high, with fatigue (57%), pain (49%), constipation (43%) and dyspnoea (41%) as the most frequent physical symptoms, while 30% were depressed and 12% had anxiety. Significant correlations between meaning-in-life and symptom severity were displayed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The level of symptom severity among cognitively intact nursing-home patients is high, requiring highly competent staff nurses. Meaning-in-life might be an important resource in relation to a patient's physical and emotional health and global well-being.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Facilitating patients' meaning-in-life might help reducing symptom severity and fostering quality of life in cognitively intact nursing-home patients. However, advancing staff nurses' competence in palliative care, symptom management and nurse-patient interaction is important for care quality and quality if life in nursing homes.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing, Sør-Trøndelag University College, Trondheim, Norway; Research Centre for Health Promotion and Resources, HIST/NTNU, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Gørill
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Haugan
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: meaning and purpose-in-life; nursing-home patients; quality of life; symptoms