Effect of humor intervention on well-being, depression, and sense of humor in hemodialysis patients

Objective: To evaluate whether visualization of humor movies during hemodialysis sessions improves subjective well-being and sense of humor, while decreasing stress / anxiety and depression levels, in hemodialysis patients. Material and Method: A pre-test / post-test design study with a non-equivalent control group was carried out in patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing hemodialysis, in two hemodialysis units of Diaverum Clinics. The study included 34 patients in the intervention group and 33 patients in the control group.The intervention consisted in the visualization of humor movies during hemodialysis sessions for ten sessions over a four-week period. The control group watched neutral movies. Data were collected using a sociodemographic and health information questionnaire (age, gender, nationality, education, occupation, marital status, dialysis session length, presence of hypertension and diabetes); the Subjective Happiness Scale; the satisfaction with life in general; the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21, and the Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale. Student t-tests and t-tests for paired samples were performed. The response to change was evaluated using: the percentage of change, ceiling effect and floor effect, effect size, and the standardized response mean. Results: The levels of subjective happiness and sense of humor increased in the intervention group, but there were no significant increases in satisfaction with life in general. Only depression levels decreased significantly in the intervention group. Conclusions: The visualization of humor movies as a nursing intervention improved the levels of subjective happiness and sense of humor, while decreasing the perception of depressive symptoms.