Unmet needs of patients with Bipolar Disorders for psychosocial interventions at Amanuel Mental Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: a Qualitative study

No Thumbnail Available

Date

2018-12

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Addis Ababa University

Abstract

Introduction The evidence base for psychosocial interventions for bipolar disorders has been largely developed in a Western cultural context. Limited data are available about the unmet needs for psychosocial care of people with bipolar disorders in low- and middle-income countries. Objective To explore unmet psychosocial needs of people with bipolar disorder and the acceptability of potential intervention approaches. Method A qualitative research design was used. Participants were recruited from people with a clinical diagnosis of bipolar disorder who are receiving out-patient follow up at Amanuel Mental Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Purposive sampling was used based on educational level and gender. Sampling was continued until theoretical saturation was achieved, Nine interviews were done. In-depth interviews were audio recorded, transcribed in Amharic and translated into English. Thematic analysis was used to identify key themes. Results The main findings of this study are participants anticipation of narrow biomedical care during their treatment, with a particular focus on medication. It was also apparent that they expected clinicians to tell them what to do, indicating a paternalistic clinician-patient interaction. Nonetheless, the participants reported a number of psychosocial problems. But their repertoire of support was narrow for fear of stigma. Some respondents also considered psychosocial stress to 2 be part of life‟s pattern. Participants were amenable to the idea of having a regular counseling for psychosocial problems, but their priorities for „talking therapy‟ were around getting information around their illness and, medication side-effects. Conclusion Unmet needs for information were apparent and could be readily addressed by implementing expected good practice for mental health care. The acceptability of more focused psychosocial interventions is less clear and compounded by low awareness of the potential benefits.

Description

Keywords

psychosocial

Citation

Collections