Self-care

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Self-care is a personal choice in health maintenance; it is the extent to which an individual, family or community engages in any activity with the intention of improving health, preventing disease, managing conditions, and restoring health. It is helped by processes of personal development and empowerment and the development of self-managementskills. Self-care skills are best seen as a sub set of life skills

Encompassing a broad spectrum of behaviour, self-care includes all health decisions consumers make for themselves and their families to maintain a good level of physical and mental health. The ICF list includes:

• Self-care
  • d510 Washing oneself
    • d5100 Washing body parts
    • d5101 Washing whole body
    • d5102 Drying oneself
    • d5108 Washing oneself, other specified
    • d5109 Washing oneself, unspecified

• • d520 Caring for body parts
    • d5200 Caring for skin
    • d5201 Caring for teeth - Oral hygiene
    • d5202 Caring for hair
    • d5203 Caring for fingernails
    • d5204 Caring for toenails
    • d5208 Caring for body parts, other specified
    • d5209 Caring for body parts, unspecified

• • d530 Toileting
    • d5300 Regulating urination
    • d5301 Regulating defecation
    • d5302 Menstrual care
    • d5308 Toileting, other specified
    • d5309 Toileting, unspecified

• • d540 Dressing
    • d5400 Putting on clothes
    • d5401 Taking off clothes
    • d5402 Putting on footwear
    • d5403 Taking off footwear
    • d5404 Choosing appropriate clothing
    • d5408 Dressing, other specified
    • d5409 Dressing, unspecified

• • d550 Eating

• • d560 Drinking

• • d570 Looking after one's health
    • d5700 Ensuring one's physical comfort
    • d5701 Managing diet and fitness
    • d5702 Maintaining one's health
    • d5708 Looking after one's health, other specified
    • d5709 Looking after one's health, unspecified

• • d598 Self-care, other specified
  • d599 Self-care, unspecified

Assessment of self-care

There are a number of measures for monitoring the ability of people to perform self-care tasks.

Self care support

Self care support can include:

• Self care information on health, lifestyle, physical activity, or healthy eating
• Information prescriptions providing personalised information and instructions to enable an individual to self care and take control of their health
• Self care and self monitoring devices and assistive technology
• Self care skills and life skills training programmes and courses for people
• Advice from pharmacists, physiotherapists and complementary therapists
• Self care support networks which can be face to face or virtual, and made up of peers or people who want to provide support to others or receive support from others

With older adult

• Barthel Index

Main article: Self-care - Assessment tools

Physical health issues

• Activities of daily living
• Adaptive behavior
• Child self care
• Daily acivities
• General Fitness Training
• Hygiene
• Independent living programs
• Nutrition
• Physical exercise
• Rehabilitation
• Skill learning
• Sleep hygiene
• Special education
• Special needs dentistry
• Stress management

See also

• Activities of daily living
• Expert Patient Programme
• Longevity
• Occupational therapy
• Physical self care by therapists
• Psychological self care by therapists
• Self-management

Additional material

Papers

• Google Scholar

External links

• Self-Care in Australia
• Self-Care in the UK