Validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Ostomy Self-Care Index

Although stoma is often life-saving, evacuation outside of natural ways and changes in body image negatively affect the quality of life of the individual. To our knowledge, there is no Turkish scale that evaluates the self-care of individuals with a stoma. This study aimed to examine the validity and reliability of the Ostomy Self-Care Index in Turkish. This is a methodological study. The study sample consisted of 253 individuals with ostomy. ‘Ostomy Individual Information Form’ and ‘Ostomy Self-Care Index’ were used as data collection tools. Data were collected between September 2020 and January 2021 through face-to-face interviews conducted at two public hospitals in Turkey. In the analysis of the data, descriptive statistics, language and content validity, confirmatory factor analysis, item analysis, internal consistency and test–retest methods were used. The content validity index was 0.99, and Cronbach's alpha was 0.949. According to confirmatory factor analysis, the goodness of fit indices were at the desired level, the factor loads of the items were between 0.575 and 0.964, and all items were included in eight sub-dimensions in line with the original scale. As in the original version of the scale, item 18, which was not statistically significant, was excluded in the analysis and was accepted as an addition. The correlation of scale items in the test–retest was between 0.837 and 0.988. This study determined that the Ostomy Self-Care Index is valid and reliable for measuring the self-care of stoma patients in Turkey. This scale can be used as a guide for evaluating the self-care of individuals with a stoma and planning their care.