Relationship between social support and self-care ability among patients with breast cancer during rehabilitation: The multiple mediating roles of resilience and depression

AimsTo identify the multiple mediating effects of resilience and depression between social support and self-care ability among patients with breast cancer during rehabilitation to provide reference for developing and implementing targeted interventions.DesignA cross-sectional study reported according to the STROBE checklist.MethodsA convenience sample of 320 patients with breast cancer during rehabilitation was recruited from one hospital in China. Data were collected from April to August 2022 using a self-report questionnaire, including the demographic and clinical information, Appraisal of Self-Care Agency Scale-Revised, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 item, and Patient Health Questionnaire-9. The mediation analysis was conducted using the SPSS Process macro.ResultsSelf-care ability was positively associated with social support (beta = .229) and resilience (beta = .290), and negatively associated with depression (beta = -.208). The relationship between social support and self-care ability was mediated by resilience and depression, respectively, and together in serial. The multiple mediating effects accounted for 34.0% of the total effect of social support on self-care ability.ConclusionOur findings identify resilience and depression as multiple mediators between social support and self-care ability and highlight the important roles of social support, resilience and depression in improving self-care ability.Relevance to Clinical PracticeHealthcare providers should pay great attention to the underlying mechanisms of how social support affects patients' self-care ability during breast cancer rehabilitation. Integrated intervention programmes targeted at enhancing social support, building resilience and alleviating depression might be beneficial to the improvement of self-care ability.Patient or Public ContributionNo patient or public contribution.Reporting MethodThe Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) checklist for cross-sectional studies was applied to report the results.