Effect of Nursing Care Based on the Orem Self-Care Model on Pain, Activities of Daily Living, and Wound Size in Patients With Diabetic Foot Ulcers.

Background and Purpose: Effective diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) management critically involves wound care, pain management, and the development of patients' self-management skills. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of nursing care based on the Orem Self-Care Model on pain, activities of daily living, and wound size in patients with DFUs. Methods: This experimental control group study was conducted with 66 patients diagnosed with grade 2 DFU according to the Wagner classification. Data were collected using an Introductory Information Form, the Modified Barthel Index, and the Numerical Rating Scale. Statistical analysis utilized Mann-Whitney U, Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test, and Friedman Repeated Measures Analysis of Variance on Ranks tests. Results: At the study's outcome, no significant differences were found between the groups in terms of sociodemographic characteristics and disease data (p > .05). The Modified Barthel Index scores of the experimental group increased significantly each week, notably exceeding those of the control group in the third and fourth weeks (p < .05). Pain scores in both groups decreased significantly over time (p < .0001). Although the control group's pain scores were statistically significantly lower than the experimental group's in the second and third weeks (p < .05), this difference was not observed by the fourth week (p > .05). Although the wound area was initially higher in the experimental group, the wound healing rate in the experimental group (54.6%) was calculated to be higher than in the control group (35.6%).