Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects up to 1 % of the global population. The disease, which affects the synovial membrane of diarthrodial joints, affects not only the joints but can also affect one’s eyes, skin, lungs, blood vessels, and heart. While the condition could be managed through disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), patients should also avoid being stress. Research indicates that high levels of stress could exacerbate the symptoms and, in turn, negate the benefits offered by DMARDs. Stress Management for Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis is an article that establishes the need to combat psychological stress to improve health outcomes for RA patients. An analysis of the articles aims at establishing the studies’ validity, reliability, and trustworthiness.
Summary of the Article
“Stress Management for Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis” is an article that establishes the need to deal with psychological stress as the primary way of managing rheumatoid arthritis. The article focuses on a case study involving a 40-year-old woman who is suffering from RA who, despite using disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, experiences flare-ups. The patient has been under work-related stress, and she thinks that the increasing job demands may be responsible for the flare-ups. The study provides crucial insights on ways of managing RA symptoms by adopting nonpharmacological, behavioral interventions that help to combat psychological stress (Prime, 2011). Cognitive-behavioral therapy, Tai Chi, RA education, and yoga are considered as some of the ways to combat psychological stress and, in turn, help in managing RA.
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Sampling Technique Used in the Study
The study into the need for managing stress for RA patients is a historical study that relies on previous studies to link stress management and RA outcomes. The writer of this article selects earlier studies into the place of stress management in the management of RA symptoms. The sampling technique seems to target studies that have been conducted by rheumatoid specialists and behavioral therapy specialists. In the same manner, the writer of this article has selected study reviews that have been conducted on the relationship between psychological stress and rheumatoid arthritis. Courtney McCray and Sandeep Agarwal, who are rheumatologists, conducted one of the review studies that have been chosen for this study. The study review indicates stressful events worsen RA symptoms by increasing joint pain, joint swelling, and increased synovial inflammation (Prime, 2011). The study has used more reviews to establish the role of nonpharmacological, behavioral treatment in managing RA symptoms.
Concerns about Reliability and Validity in This Study
The study seems to advance the importance of reducing psychological stress in RA patients, the main way of alleviating RA symptoms. While the study provides such significant insights, it may not be as reliable and valid majorly due to the sampling and research techniques. The study appears to haphazard probably because the writer relied on reviews by other researchers. The study reviews may allow room for bias and subjectivity, which are, in turn, transferred to this study. The study seems hurried with the researcher referring to studies as ‘other studies’ without offering more detail to make the other studies appear authoritative and credible. It would have been better if the researcher in this study conducted reviews on related research studies instead of borrowing from other reviews. The discussion part of the research study does not seem conclusive enough, as it is not linked with the previous research studies. To this end, the research study appears hurried and, in turn, lacks professional authority, reliability, and credibility.
Analyzing if the Study Demonstrates Flaws or Discrepancies
The study seems to have flaws and discrepancies, especially on the role of nonpharmacological, behavioral treatment in managing RA symptoms. The researcher set out to affirm that stress management through nonpharmacological, behavioral treatment is effective. The article reviews that have been chosen for the study claim that stress management indeed reduces the symptoms. In as much as the reviews support the researcher’s thesis, the study contradicts the reviews in the discussion section. In this section, the researcher insists that the exiting research is not conclusive, and more needs to be done (Prime, 2011). In such a case, one cannot fail but wonder why the researcher chose these articles and still fail to view the results of previous studies to be conclusive. These discrepancies impact negatively on the research findings and, at the same time, nullify this study.
Analyzing and Summarizing an Additional Qualitative Study
Summary of the Qualitative Study
Prothero et al. 2018 conducted a qualitative study on the place of psychological interventions in managing RA symptoms. The study which is titled “The Evidence Base for Psychological Interventions for Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Review of Reviews,” is a review of prior studies. The study aimed at determining if psychological interventions were effective in improving biophysical outcomes for RA adult patients. Moreover, the study focused on establishing the relationship between psychological interventions’ intensity and health outcomes in RA patients. The study adopted randomized controlled trials involving various psychological interventions such as CBT, psychotherapy, and disclosure therapy. The researcher based the study on similar studies that had been published in MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO, among other databases. The findings indicate that psychological interventions contribute to small to moderate biopsychosocial improvements among RA patients.
Analyzing the Study for Trustworthiness
Qualitative research studies are deemed authoritative and reliable if they fulfill the trustworthiness criterion. The trustworthiness criterion has four components, which are credibility, transferability, dependability, and conformability. The study by Prothero et al. (2018) seems to fulfill most of these components, making it a trustworthy research study. Credibility as an element of trustworthiness focuses on linking findings with reality and, in so doing, demonstrate that the findings are true ((Kortsjens & Moser, 2018). The researchers have reviewed previous research studies related to psychological interventions and, in this case, ties reality with the findings. The research findings are transferable in that the findings could be replicated in different contexts, situations, and settings. The fact that the researchers have used reliable databases with peer-reviewed articles makes the findings transferable since they are authoritative. Dependability, as a component in the trustworthiness criterion, refers to the stability of findings in that they remain consistent and repeatable (Forero et al., 2018). The research findings are deemed dependable since there is enough data to enhance data analysis and make recommendations. The qualitative study by Prothero et al. (2018) is conformable since the findings are based on prior research studies data as opposed to researchers’ thoughts and imagination.
Suggestions for Improvement
The qualitative research studies have provided deep insights into the role of psychological and nonpharmacological interventions in managing rheumatoid arthritis symptoms. The studies have established that while these interventions cannot fully replace pharmacological interventions, they make the symptoms more bearable. However, in as much as the articles have provided new insights into the role of psychological interventions in managing RA, they have a few shortcomings. The studies being qualitative tend to rely heavily on published and peer-reviewed articles that focus on the same topic. While qualitative research benefits from thoroughly researched and informative articles, it demonstrates a lack of input from the researcher. For this reason, it would be better if the researchers too included a bit of quantitative research to back up the findings. It would be crucial for the researchers to have their input as opposed to reviewing and synthesizing prior research studies.
References
Forero, R., Nahidi, S., De Costa, J., Mohsin, M., Fitzgerald, G., Gibson, N., McCarthy, S., & Aboagye-Sarfo, P. (2018). Application of four-dimension criteria to assess the rigor of qualitative research in emergency medicine. BMC Health Services Research , 18(1), 120. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-018-2915-2
Korstjens, I., & Moser, A. (2018) Practical guidance to qualitative research. European Journal of General Practice, 24(1), 120-124. 10.1080/13814788.2017.1375092
Prime. (2011). Stress management for patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Prime Education, LLC. https://primeinc.org/casestudies/pa_np/study/897/Stress_Management_for_Patients_with_Rheumatoid_Arthritis
Prothero, L., Barley, E., Galloway, J., Georgopoulou, S., & Sturt, J. (2018). The evidence base for psychological interventions for rheumatoid arthritis: A systematic review of reviews. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 82, 20-29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2018.03.008
