Introduction:

An appropriate self-management by persons living with chronic conditions such as cancer, diabetes, or hypertension, can make a big difference in terms of quality of life. Therefore, it is important to enhance our knowledge regarding how persons suffering from any of these chronic diseases self-manage their condition.

Objective:

To describe how Peruvian persons living with cancer, diabetes, or hypertension, self-manage their condition.

Méthod:

This is a transversal-comparative study on a sample of n= 562 Peruvian persons: 160 with cancer, 187 with diabetes, and 215 with hypertension. The sampling was probabilistic and intentional. The Partners in Health (PIH) instrument was used. Descriptive and non-parametric statistics were calculated. The Kruskall Wallis test was used to compare three independent sample types. The difference effects and statistical power were also calculated.

Results:

The general self-management index and its related dimensions in the three groups were below the general mean respectively. No differences were found between groups in terms of clinical diagnosis (cancer, diabetes mellitus, hypertension). ρ<0.001; (1- β>.80 and d>0.20).

Discussion and Conclusions:

Persons with chronic conditions demonstrate inadequate self-management. No differences were found based on the medical diagnosis. Consequently, it is imperative to implement programs aimed at improving self-management, particularly within the first level of attention. More research on the issue needs to be conducted in Latin America, especially regarding persons suffering from cancer.