Examination of Stigmatization Levels Related to Tuberculosis in Patients and Healthy Individuals

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to determine the level of stigmatization of healthy individuals toward the patients with tuberculosis and the level of stigmatization of patients as an individual with tuberculosis.
METHODS: This descriptive study comprised patients and healthy individuals who applied to the outpatient clinic between July 1, 2013, and July 7, 2014. The sample of the study consisted of 421 individuals including 312 healthy individuals and 109 individuals with tuberculosis. The data were collected using a questionnaire formed by the researchers and consisting of a question about the definitive characteristics of individuals and the Tuberculosis-Related Stigma Scale (TRS). The Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney U tests and reliability test were used for data analysis. Written permission was obtained from the institutions, the ethics committee, and the individuals to conduct the study.
RESULTS: This study found that 36.9% of healthy individuals were aged between 36 and 53 years, and 33.7% of them were university graduates. It was also found that 42.2% of individuals with tuberculosis were aged between 36 and 53 years, and 40.4% of them were primary school graduates. The mean score on the TRS of healthy individuals was found to be 13.87±6.26, and that of individuals with tuberculosis was 11.08±5.50.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Both the level of stigmatization performed by the healthy individuals toward the patients with tuberculosis and the level of stigmatization of patients with tuberculosis were found to be low. However, more stigmatization was found in patients who had a feeling of pessimism because they were diagnosed with tuberculosis and who knew that tuberculosis was contagious. The result suggested that the public should be educated about tuberculosis disease.

Saðlýklý ve Hasta Bireylerde Tüberküloza Ýliþkin Damgalanma Düzeylerinin Ýncelenmesi

GÝRÝÞ ve AMAÇ: Bu çalýþma, saðlýklý bireylerin tüberkülozlu hastalarý damgalama düzeyini ve tüberkülozlu hastalarýn tüberkülozlu birey olarak damgalanma düzeyini belirlemek amacý ile yapýlmýþtýr.
YÖNTEM ve GEREÇLER: anýmlayýcý araþtýrmanýn evrenini, 1 Temmuz 2013-7 Temmuz 2014 tarihleri arasýnda polikliniðe baþvuran hasta ve saðlýklý bireyler, örneklemini ise 312 saðlýklý, 109 hasta birey olmak üzere toplam 421 birey oluþturmuþtur. Veriler, araþtýrmacýlar tarafýndan oluþturulan ve bireylerin tanýtýcý özelliklerinin yer aldýðý sorudan oluþan anket formu ve “Tüberküloz Ýle Ýlgili Stigma Ölçeði” ile toplanmýþtýr. Verilerin analizinde Kruskall Wallis testi, Mann Whitney U testi ve güvenirlik testi kullanýlmýþtýr. Çalýþmanýn yapýlabilmesi için kurumlardan, etik kuruldan ve bireylerden yazýlý izin alýnmýþtýr.
BULGULAR: Saðlýklý bireylerin %36.9’u 36-53 yaþ grubunda, %33.7’si üniversite mezunudur. Tüberkülozlu bireylerin ise %42.2’si 36-53 yaþ grubunda, %40.4’ü ilkokul mezunudur. Tüberküloz ile ilgili stigma ölçeðinin puan ortalamasý saðlýklý bireylerde 13.87±6.26, tüberkülozlu bireylerde 11.08±5.50 olarak bulunmuþtur.
TARTIÞMA ve SONUÇ: Hem saðlýklý bireylerin tüberkülozlu hastalarý damgalama düzeyi hem de tüberkülozlu bireylerin tüberküloz hastalýðýna iliþkin damgalanma düzeyi düþük bulunmuþtur. Ancak, tüberküloz tanýsý aldýðý için karamsarlýk duygularý yaþayan ve tüberküloz hastalýðýnýn bulaþýcý olduðunu bilen hastalarda daha fazla damgalanma görüldüðü saptanmýþtýr. Bu sonuca göre tüberküloz hastalýðýna iliþkin topluma eðitim verilmesi önerilmektedir.