RESEARCH ARTICLE
What Support do family Caregivers For Mental Health Care Users Receive From Healthcare Professionals And Family Members? A Qualitative Study
Nelson Raluthaga1, Hilda N. Shilubane1, *, Seani A. Mulondo1, Lunic B. Khoza2
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2023Volume: 16
E-location ID: e187494452301230
Publisher ID: e187494452301230
DOI: 10.2174/18749445-v16-e230124-2022-179
Article History:
Received Date: 29/9/2022Revision Received Date: 30/12/2022
Acceptance Date: 11/1/2023
Electronic publication date: 03/03/2023
Collection year: 2023

open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Background:
Due to the mental health reforms in developed countries, the focus of mental healthcare services has shifted from hospital-based to community-based care. This suggests that family members are expected to care for their Menal Health Care User (MHCUs). This study aimed to explore the support caregivers for MHCUs receive from healthcare professionals and other family members.
Methods:
The participants were conveniently selected from the primary healthcare centres. Unstructured interviews were conducted with twelve family caregivers. Data were analyzed using Tesch’s open coding method. Ethical issues and trustworthiness were followed throughout the study.
Results:
The study revealed two themes, poor support from healthcare professionals and poor support from family members, and seven sub-themes.
Conclusion:
There is a dearth of information about the support offered to family caregivers of MHCUs in the context of South Africa. Training programs for caregivers are recommended to improve psychological well-being and social support while decreasing the caregiver burden.