Anxiety level and its relationship to quality of life in adults who had undergone an open heart surgery in Palestine

The Study aimed to identifying degree of anxiety, and how it relates to quality of life in adults who had undergone to open-heart operations in Palestine, and how that relates to a set of independent variables. The Study sample consisted of 239 patients who had undergone open heart surgeries at six hospitals in the West Bank and Jerusalem between years of (2010-2011), where such type of surgery is being carried out. The sample was selected using stratified random sampling. The research was adopted descriptive and correlation methodology. The Questionnaires that were used as the data collection tool for the Study (State/ trait anxiety, and quality of life). The degree of anxiety (state and trait) in adults who had undergone heart surgery was "medium". The study showed the existence of statistically significant differences at level of (α ≤ 0.05) in the average degree of anxiety (state and trait) due to the variability of gender (male/female) in favor of (female), and did not found significant differences statistically significant in the degree of anxiety (state and trait) due to the age variability, marital status, housing, hospital, and the presence of other diseases. The results did not show a statistically significant differences in the degree of anxiety (state) due to the variable of education, while I have found statistically significant differences in the degree of anxiety (trait) due to the variable of education, and it showed the existence of statistically significant differences in the degree of anxiety (state and trait) due to the work variable, length of time, and incomeThe total score of adults assessment who have undergone heart surgery for their standard of living and degree of satisfaction with their health in general was "medium", while showed that the degree of life quality have been "average" from the total score, and the most important aspect of quality of life was yet in social relations, expressing the degree of “High”. Next was (mental health), (environmental Health) and (physical health), expressing a degree of "medium". The existence of statistically significant differences in the rates of the degree of quality of life due to the variable of gender from the total score and the rest of the other aspects, except after the (social relations) and for (males), while showing no statistically significant differences in the degree of quality of life due to the variable age, marital status, whether the total score or the rest of the other aspects of life quality. The results showed no statistically significant differences in the degree of life quality due to the housing variable, education, employment, hospital, time after the operation, income, and other diseasesaccording to some aspects of life quality, while I found statistically significant differences in the degree of life quality due to the same variables in some other life quality aspects. Theresults showed that the relationship between anxiety state and anxiety trait is a positive relationship statistically significant, as well as the relationship between anxiety (state and trait), the life quality aspects and the total score for life quality is a negative relationship statistically significant, while showed that the relationship between the quality of life aspects and the total score of life quality is a statistically significant positive relationship. In light of these findings, emerged from the study some suggestions to decision-makers, researchers, and workers in the field of mental health, doctors, and nurses. It was the prominent of the need to develop outreach programs competent to improve the psychological and reduce anxiety (state and trait) and improve the quality of life in all its aspects for patients, especially females, low level of education, unemployed and earn a low-income, after the surgery, and those suffering from other accompany diseases, which will reflect positively on the outcome of the surgery and general health condition