Aims: Studies investigating the effect of patient education usually evaluate whole educational programmes. The aim of this study was to describe the content of several locally developed educational programmes and investigate which parts predicted improved coping skills in the participants.
Method: A prospective observational study investigating the content of several educational programmes and the participants' coping skills 4 months afterwards.
Results: The content of 35 different educational programmes was described. The programmes lasted on average 12 hours. The main focus was increased knowledge about the disease and improved coping skills. Programmes developed locally and tailored to the specific participant group in collaboration between services users and health professionals led to improved coping skills. The participants' level of activity was the strongest predictor for improved coping skills (adjOR = 4.1 (95% CI 1.5-11.2) p = 0.007).
Conclusions: The group process during patient education might be more important for improving coping skills than the content of the programme. Future patient education programmes should focus on group processes and improving participants' activity.
Keywords: Coping skills; patient education.