The assumption of this descriptive biopsychosocial research project assumes that having chronic disease and being hospitalized is stressful. The coping protocol is attempting to determine the outcome of this stressful event by mapping the coping responses of patients with chronic disease. The correlation between symptom intensity, mood state and coping response are being formally measured. The assumption here is that the intensity of symptoms patients experience affects mood. Our overall affective state, mood, affects if not determines our reaction, coping response. Therefore, by correlating symptom intensity with mood and coping response the study hopes to elucidate how patients effectively handle the stress of chronic illness.Secondary hypothesis is looking at whether patients in different diagnostic categories cope differently from other diagnostic clusters. For example, do patients with mental health diagnosis cope differently than those patients with medical surgical diagnosis? Do patients within the same diagnostic category cope differently at different stages of the disease (i.e., arthritis)? Finally, several groups are being studied longitudinally; alcoholic: type 1 and type 2; bipolar: type 1 and type 2 and bone marrow transplantation. Patients receiving solid organ transplants have been added. Patients will receive a CRI at screening, 1-week post transplant and at 6-month follow up.This protocol was officially terminated on May 30, 2000. Protocol 96-CC-0047 accrued 506 of its allotted 540 subjects.
