CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Schizophrenia the most common type of mental illness is a chronic and disabling psychiatric illness that affects approximately 1% of the world's population. It is often accompanied by relapse even while on treatment. Relapse rates vary from 50% to 92% and are similar in developed and developing countries, despite the former having well-established mental health services (Davis, 2014; Hogarty & Ulrich, 2013). Unfortunately, psychotic relapse is so common, with up to 60% of all patients having a relapse within the year of being hospitalized (Davis, 2014; Hogarty & Ulrich, 2013).
With the total cost of hospital care for patients with schizophrenia exceeding two billion dollars annually (Weiden & Olfson, 2014) relapse represents a significant public health problem. The personal costs associated with relapse-including impaired role functioning, disrupted interpersonal relationships and demoralization is also considerable. Though new medications have improved the course of illness for many patients, relapses are still common. (Tanveer & Rukhsaner, 2009). Although antipsychotic medication is effective in reducing relapse rates, 30% to 40% of patients relapse within one year after hospital discharge even if they are receiving maintenance medication (Sena, 2003, Sariah 2013).
Schizophrenic symptoms affects patient as well as caregivers in multiple and complex ways. It is obvious that psychiatric and or physical illnesses have great impact on caregivers. Caregivers of schizophrenic patients can be the first source of support and stability or it can become part of the problem that leads to ineffective coping (Kreyenbuhl, Buchanan, Dickerson & Dixon, 2009). The recognition of the importance of the caregiver patient’s care necessitated the incorporation of the caregiver as a unit into healthcare modules in recent time (Bormar & McNeely, 2014).
A caregiver of schizophrenic patient struggles throughout the person’s illness with the change it brings and their own feelings about the illness. In the past, caregivers were blamed for many of the problems that mentally ill people experienced and although this perception of fault has changed, caregivers still experience a catastrophic event when mental illness occurs (Finkelman, 2002). The caregiver which is a unit of mental health care is highly involved in the prevention and management of relapse when the client with mental ill-health especially schizophrenia lives with caregiver. A lot of the day-to-day help and rehabilitation is carried out by the caregiver if the caregiver has knowledge of the prevention and management. Thus, if they are to effectively help the client, caregivers must have help in managing their stress and coping with difficult situations to avoid relapse.
The image of isolated people with serious mental illness, especially schizophrenia, who return to communities, other than their caregiver, has been widely publicized. However, most people with mental illness are involved with their families and have frequent contact with family members who are always the caregivers while they are within the larger community. The mental illness impact on the entire family is so heavy that it is often called family burden (Doornbos, 1997). Mental illness can have a negative impact on the caregiver as well. Problems identified by caregivers/family include the following (Doornbos, 1997):
Increased stress and conflict.
Blaming each other for the illness.
Difficulty understanding or accepting the illness.
Tension during family gatherings.
Disproportionate amount of family time, energy, or money given to the ill member.
Family members may feel guilty about their relative’s illness. It is also common for those who are close to a person with any serious illness to wonder whether they could have done something to prevent regression of the illness (Miller, 2002).
Caregivers who provide care for schizophrenics often feel isolated and alone in dealing with the challenges of care-giving. Sometimes they may be embarrassed about the illness or fear that the person with psychological disorder will behave inappropriately in the presence of others. The caregiver in no doubt has a lot of challenges to face in the prevention and management of relapse of family member that is mentally recuperating or adjusting to the societal dynamics. The services of a mental health nurse may be quite necessary as a support person. The mental health nurse can play an important role in offering caregiver opportunities to discuss their concerns and taking action to meet their needs whenever possible.
| Project details | Contents |
|---|---|
| Number of Pages | 95 pages |
| Chapter one | Introduction |
| Chapter two | Literature review |
| Chapter three | methodology |
| Chapter four | Data analysis |
| Chapter five | Summary,discussion & recommendations |
| Reference | Reference |
| Questionnaire | Questionnaire |
| Appendix | Appendix |
| Chapter summary | 1 to 5 chapters |
| Available document | PDF and MS-word format |
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