Coping with personal care and stigma: experiences of persons living with schizophrenia

Living with a chronic mental condition such as schizophrenia impacts significantly on the individual's social functioning and activities of daily living. However, there is little data on the experiences of people living with schizophrenia, especially in Ghana regarding personal care and stigma....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BMC nursing 2022-05, Vol.21 (1), p.107-107, Article 107
Main Authors: Commey, Isaac Tetteh, Ninnoni, Jerry Paul K, Ampofo, Evelyn Asamoah
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Activities of daily living
Care and treatment
Confidentiality
Consent
Coping
Coping strategies
Ghana
Influence
Interviews
Mental disorders
Mental health care
Personal care
Personal grooming
Psychological aspects
Qualitative research
Review boards
Schizophrenia
Social aspects
Stigma
Stigma (Social psychology)
Well being
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Summary:Living with a chronic mental condition such as schizophrenia impacts significantly on the individual's social functioning and activities of daily living. However, there is little data on the experiences of people living with schizophrenia, especially in Ghana regarding personal care and stigma. This study explored qualitatively the experiences of people living with schizophrenia in Southern Ghana. Nine people with schizophrenia were purposively recruited for this study. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically following a descriptive phenomenological data analysis framework. The study revealed that people with schizophrenia are capable of performing some activities of daily living, such as maintenance of personal and environmental hygiene and medication management. However, some participants narrated their experiences of stigma and thus, resorted to certain strategies such as spirituality, medication adherence and mental fortitude to cope with schizophrenia. In conclusion, it was evident that people with schizophrenia, in their lucid intervals, can undertake various activities of daily living, including personal care, however, living with schizophrenia impacts on psychological well-being enormously, and thus, education, counselling, and client adherence to the treatment may improve quality of life.
ISSN:1472-6955
1472-6955
DOI:10.1186/s12912-022-00891-5