Abstract
Menopausal women in suburban regions often face challenges in accessing healthcare resources, leading to lower health literacy and reduced quality of life. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of an education intervention based on self-efficacy theory on the quality of life, self-efficacy and health literacy of menopausal women living in suburban areas. This Quasi- experimental study was conducted on 214 suburban menopausal women in Mashhad-Iran from 2021 to 2022. At first, women were divided into intervention and control groups by a simple random method. Intervention group received training in four sessions based on the self-efficacy theory. The questionnaires used in this study were TOFLA (Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults), Scherer's self-efficacy and MENQOL (Menopausal Quality of Life). Questionnaires were completed before intervention, immediately, and 3 months later. The mean score of quality of life in the experimental group before intervention was 80 ± 27.33, immediately after intervention was 62.66 ± 22.45, and after 3 months was 51.12 ± 23.57 and this improvement was significant (p < 0.001). However, in the control group, there was no significant difference in mean score of quality of life before, immediately and 3 months after the intervention(p > 0.05). The mean score of health literacy in the experimental group before the intervention was 9.36 ± 11.36, immediately after the intervention was 20.65 ± 11.41, and three months after the intervention was 21.09 ± 11.78 (p < 0.001). Results from the study indicated that educational interventions based on the self-efficacy model is an appropriate strategy to promote quality of life and health literacy in menopausal women.