Burden and coping strategies experienced by caregivers of persons with schizophrenia in the community.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Examined the levels of burden and the coping strategies experienced by caregivers of persons with schizophrenia in the community. It aims (1) to provide mental healthcare professionals with more information about caregiver stressors and (2) to recommend more effective community resources and support.

BACKGROUND: A caregiver's burden increases due to negative coping skills and lack of resources. However, insufficient studies of caregiver burden and coping skills accentuate the already inadequate understanding of the field. This lack of understanding often leads to frequent readmission of patients when caregivers give up their care-giving responsibilities.

DESIGN: Descriptive and quantitative methods.

METHODS: Convenience sampling method was used at three outpatient clinics on 150 caregivers. The Burden Assessment Scale measured care-giving burden. The Family Crisis-Oriented Personal Scales examined the coping strategies.

RESULTS: Findings reveal that 31.3% caregivers felt distress and 33.3% found stigma upsetting. Only 14.7% sought help from healthcare workers and 49.3% were interested to know more. Nevertheless, 24.7% verbalized sufficient social support.

CONCLUSIONS: Results demonstrated a high burden on caregivers because of many factors such as other commitments, lack of resources, insufficient financial support, education level and ageing. This study found that long-term caregivers suffer more than short-term ones, which is contrary to Seng's study (2005). Burden increases further for those having to cope with both work and care giving at the same time.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: It is critical to improve and increase services and resources to support care giving. It is also essential to educate and ensure that the people affected know how to leverage the available resources. It is important to improve and increase our services and resources. It is also essential to educate and ensure the people concerned know how to make use of them. It also essential to educate and ensure the people concerned know how to make use of them.