Analysis of the Current Situation and Factors Influencing the Stigma of Facial Palsy Patients

: Objective: To investigate the current stigma status in patients with facial palsy and analyze the factors influencing it. Methods: The General Information Questionnaire, the Facial Disability Index Rating Scale, the General Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Social Influence Scale were used to investigate 220 patients with facial palsy admitted to the Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion of Shaanxi Provincial Hospital from December 2021 to April 2022. Results:The stigma score for patients with facial palsy was (58.89±11.45), with a mean entry score of (2.45±0.48), and 95% (209 cases) of patients with facial palsy had moderate or high level of stigma. Gender, per capita monthly income, medical payment method, self-efficacy level, and facial disability index were the factors influencing factors of morbidity stigma in patients with facial palsy. Conclusion:Patients with facial palsy have a high level of morbidity stigma. Health care professionals should provide health education to patients with facial palsy so that they can accept the changes in their facial image, conduct regular communication sessions for patients with facial palsy and encourage patients to actively confide in their feelings, improve the level of self-efficacy of patients with facial palsy, reduce their negative emotions and reduce their sense of stigma. -16-The present outcome study showed that patients with facial palsy with higher self-efficacy had a lower sense of morbidity stigma. The results of the present study are consistent with the findings of morbidity stigma in patients with enterostomy [8] The results of the study are consistent with the findings that patients with lower levels of self-efficacy have a higher sense of morbidity and shame. Some studies suggest that [21] People with high self-efficacy are more successful in performing specific behaviors because, even in difficult situations, tend to consider the positive outcomes associated with the behavior, and they are more likely than others to persist until their goals are achieved. In contrast, people with low self-efficacy are prone to thoughts of low self-esteem, leading to problems of anxiety and depression, and ultimately less likely to achieve their goals. People with facial palsy who have high self-efficacy are more likely to approach their condition with a positive mindset, adopt positive coping strategies for their facial image, actively cooperate with treatment, and have fewer negative emotions generated by themselves, and therefore have a low sense of illness stigma. On the contrary, patients with low self-efficacy are more likely to treat their condition with pessimism, adopt negative coping strategies, and even become disappointed with medical care, believing that they cannot cure their facial palsy, generating great negative emotions and increasing their sense of shame accordingly. Therefore, we nursing staff should pay more attention to patients with low self-efficacy, encourage them to communicate more with the outside world, and use personalized interventions such as peer support and family support to enhance their self-confidence to overcome the disease, have hope for the future, and improve their self-efficacy.