Search results for ‘Subject term:"mental health problems"’ Sort:
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Informal care-giving and mental ill-health: differential relationships by workload, gender, age and area-remoteness in a UK region
- Authors:
- DOEBLER Stefanie, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Health and Social Care in the Community, 25(3), 2017, pp.987-999.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This paper reports on a study carried out in a UK region which investigated the relationship between informal care-giving and mental ill-health. The analysis was conducted by linking three data sets, the Northern Ireland Longitudinal Study, the Northern Ireland Enhanced Prescribing Database and the Proximity to Service Index from the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. The analysis used both a subjective measure of mental ill-health, i.e. a question asked in the 2011 Census, and an objective measure, whether the respondents had been prescribed antidepressants by a General Practitioner between 2010 and 2012. The study applied binary logistic multilevel modelling to these two responses to test whether, and for what sub-groups of the population, informal care-giving was related to mental ill-health. The results showed that informal care-giving per se was not related to mental ill-health, although there was a strong relationship between the intensity of the care-giving role and mental ill-health. Females under 50, who provided over 19 hours of care, were not employed or worked part-time and who provided care in both 2001 and 2011 were at a statistically significantly elevated risk of mental ill-health. Caregivers in remote areas with limited access to shops and services were also at a significantly increased risk as evidenced by prescription rates for antidepressants. With community care policies aimed at supporting people to remain at home, the paper highlights the need for further research in order to target resources appropriately. (Edited publisher abstract)
Voices unheard: exploring the caregiver experience for caregivers of emerging adults with mental illness
- Authors:
- MILLER Kirsty, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Families in Society, 98(4), 2017, pp.310--18..
- Publisher:
- The Alliance for Children and Families
The purpose of this study was to obtain perspectives from caregivers of emerging adults (ages 16–25) who were accessing mental health care services. Using constructivist grounded theory, nine caregivers participated in focus groups or individual interviews. Results suggest that caregivers' experiences centred on three areas: the emotions that they experienced (having frustration, feeling burdened, not being helped, and perceiving a lack of options), the actions that they took in their caregiver role (care facilitation and advocacy), and the external forces that perpetuated negative emotions and adversely impacted caregiver ability to facilitate and advocate (crisis-driven system, wait times, and substance misuse). Findings illustrate the impact of external forces on caregiver feelings and actions, reflecting a system that perpetuates the cycle of wait times and helplessness. (Publisher abstract)
Cognitive impairment in Parkinson's disease: impact on quality of life of carers
- Authors:
- LAWSON R.A., et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 32(12), 2017, pp.1362-1370.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: The quality of life (QoL) of informal caregivers of people with Parkinson's disease (PD) (PwP) can be affected by the caring role. Because of cognitive symptoms and diminished activities of daily living, in addition to the management of motor symptoms, carers of PwP and cognitive impairment may experience increased levels of burden and poorer QoL compared with carers of PwP without cognitive impairment. This study aimed to investigate the impact of cognitive impairment in PD upon QoL of carers. Methods: Approximately 36 months after diagnosis, 66 dyadic couples of PwP and carers completed assessments. PwP completed a schedule of neuropsychological assessments and QoL measures; carers of PwP completed demographic questionnaires and assessments of QoL. Factor scores of attention, memory/executive function and global cognition, as derived by principal component analysis, were used to evaluate cognitive domains. Results: Hierarchical regression analysis found lower Montreal Cognitive Assessment was a significant independent predictor of poorer carer QoL, in addition to number of hours spent caregiving, carer depression and PD motor severity. Attentional deficits accounted for the largest proportion of variance of carer QoL. Carers of PwP and dementia (n = 9) had significantly poorer QoL scores compared with PwP and mild cognitive impairment (n = 18) or normal cognition (n = 39) carers (p < 0.01). Conclusions: Attentional deficits were the strongest predictor of carer QoL compared with other cognitive predictors. Carers for those with PD dementia reported the poorest QoL. Interventions such as respite or cognitive behavioural therapy to improve mood and self-efficacy in carers may improve carer QoL. (Publisher abstract)
Exploring the potential for family carers to support people with mental illness to stop smoking
- Authors:
- LAWN Sharon, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Dual Diagnosis, 13(1), 2017, pp.52-59.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Cigarette smoking poses significant health burdens for people with mental illness. They die sooner than they should, and smoking is a major contributor to their high rates of morbid chronic physical health conditions and early mortality, compared to the general population. Family carers provide important support to people with mental illness. However, family carers' perspectives of smoking by their family members with mental illness are largely absent from the research literature and from practice, despite smoking rates remaining high and quit rates remaining low for this population. Little is known about how family carers are or could be involved in supporting people with mental illness who smoke to stop smoking. This paper aims to provide a discussion of the opportunities for family carers to support their family member's smoking cessation and a discussion of our preliminary research on this topic. From the available literature, it appears that family carers are well placed to support smoking cessation for this population; however, they struggled physically, philosophically, and emotionally with perceived responsibilities involving their family member's smoking and the caring role. They felt isolated and asserted that there was limited support from service providers to assist them. The authors concluded that family carers are important agents within the person's immediate environment who could help them to improve their smoking cessation success. This suggests also that mental health services and other health service providers could benefit from including family carers in their efforts to support smoking cessation for people with mental illness who smoke. (Edited publisher abstract)
Personal and relational empowerment: a framework for family recovery
- Authors:
- BUCKLEY-WALKER Kellie, CROWE Trevor P., CAPUTI Peter
- Journal article citation:
- Advances in Dual Diagnosis, 10(1), 2017, pp.25-38.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: Caring for a person with a substance use disorder (SUD) and/or mental health disorder (MHD) represents a significant burden for family members. The features of “carers/family members” experiences reflect trauma signatures. Consequently, working through this trauma for carers corresponds with psychological recovery, empowerment processes and intrapersonal/interpersonal needs. The purpose of this paper is to outline a framework called the “personal and relational empowerment (PRE)” framework which enables family support practitioners to help family members to be able to take control of their own lives, develop meaningful relationships and live purposeful and fulfilling lives, regardless of whether the person with the SUD and/or MHD is in recovery or not. Design/methodology/approach: This paper critically reviews existing frameworks for carer recovery, through a systematic literature search, and proposes a “PRE” alternative to redress the shortfalls in these existing frameworks. Findings: The PRE framework takes a multi-level needs-based approach to understand carer recovery. This framework links the concepts – psychological recovery, empowerment processes and intrapersonal/interpersonal needs. Practical implications: The PRE framework recognises the importance of recovery support practitioners being able to balance the immediate carer crisis intervention needs responses with personal growth and well-being supporting interventions. Originality/value: The PRE framework of family recovery attempts to answer the need to broaden the focus on the family journey to better reflect the principles and practices of contemporary SUD and/or MHD recovery-based support. (Publisher abstract)
The role of family carers in the use of personal budgets by people with mental health problems
- Authors:
- HAMILTON Sarah, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Health and Social Care in the Community, 25(1), 2017, pp.158-166.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Personal budgets aim to increase choice and independence for people with social care needs but they remain underused by people with mental health problems compared to other disability groups. The use of personal budgets may impact on families in a variety of ways, both positive and negative. This paper draws on interviews, undertaken in 2012–2013 with 18 family carers and 12 mental health service users, that explored experiences of family involvement in accessing and managing personal budgets for a person with mental health-related social care needs. The sample was drawn from three sites across England, with additional carers being recruited via voluntary sector networks. The authors' findings show that for many people with severe mental health needs who lack motivation and confidence to negotiate access to personal budgets, carers may provide the necessary support to enable them to benefit from this form of social care support. The role carers may play in initiating, pursuing and maximising the level of support available through personal budgets is illustrated.. However, some carers interviewed considered that personal budget funding was reduced because of practitioners’ assumptions about carers’ willingness and ability to provide support. The authors also report perceived tensions between family carers and practitioners around appropriate involvement in decision-making. The study findings have implications for local authorities, practitioners and family carers in supporting the involvement of family carers in support for people with severe mental health problems. (Edited publisher abstract)
Gratitude and coping among familial caregivers of persons with dementia
- Authors:
- LAU Bobo Hi-Po, CHENG Cecilia
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 21(4), 2017, pp.445-453.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Objectives: Gratitude is widely perceived as a key factor to psychological well-being by different cultures and religions. The relationship between gratitude and coping in the context of familial dementia caregiving has yet to be investigated. Design: This study is the first to examine the associations among gratitude, coping strategies, psychological resources and psychological distress using a structural equation modelling approach. Results: Findings with 101 Chinese familial caregivers of persons with dementia (mean age = 57.6, range = 40–76; 82% women) showed that gratitude was related to the greater use of emotion-focused coping (positive reframing, acceptance, humour, emotional social support seeking, religious coping) and psychological resources (caregiving competence and social support). Psychological resources and emotion-focused coping in turn explained the association between gratitude and lower levels of psychological distress (caregiving burden and depressive symptoms). Conclusion: The present results indicate the beneficial role of gratitude on coping with caregiving distress and provide empirical foundation for incorporating gratitude in future psychological interventions for caregivers. (Publisher abstract)
Co-design of a carers strategy for New South Wales: reflections on a new approach to collaborative policy making with carers
- Authors:
- McFARLANE Helen, TURVEY Karen
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Care and Caring, 1(1), 2017, pp.127-134.
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
NSW is Australia's most populous state, with 7.7 million people (about a third of the Australian population). There are 905,000 carers in NSW. Carers provide ongoing unpaid support to people who need it because of their disability, chronic illness, mental ill-health, dementia or frail age. This article looks at the New South Wales (NSW) Carers Strategy 2014–19 (NSW Department of Family and Community Services, 2014), which is a whole-of-government and whole of-community response to support carers in NSW The aim is for carers in NSW to be supported to participate in social and economic life, to be healthy, and to live well. (Edited publisher abstract)