Association Between Patient Activation and Health Behaviors in People With Parkinson's Disease.

PURPOSE: Patient activation encompasses the knowledge, skills, confidence, and willingness to manage health, particularly critical for people with Parkinson's disease (PD) in effective disease management. The current study investigated the relationship between patient activation and health behaviors.

METHOD: Participants (N = 57) were recruited via social media. Patient activation was measured using the Patient Activation Measure® (PAM®), and health behaviors were assessed through the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP-II). Partial correlation analyzed associations, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) tested differences across groups.

RESULTS

Patient activation was significantly correlated with overall health behaviors (r = 0.64, p < 0.001) and all subscales, including health responsibility, physical activity, nutrition, spiritual growth, interpersonal relations, and stress management (range = 0.39 to 0.64). A one-way ANOVA confirmed significant differences in health behaviors across activation levels.

CONCLUSION

Higher patient activation is associated with better health-promoting behaviors in people with PD. Assessing activation may help tailor interventions to support healthy aging in this population.