Journal article
Quality of Life and Social Isolation Among Caregivers of Adults with Schizophrenia: Policy and Outcomes
L Hayes, G Hawthorne, J Farhall, B O’Hanlon, C Harvey
Community Mental Health Journal | Published : 2015
Abstract
Services have been increasingly directed at supporting carers of people living with mental illness but it is difficult to evaluate the impact of service change where benchmarks for carer functioning are sparse. Sixty Australian carers were assessed regarding their quality of life, psychological distress, social isolation and caregiving experience. Their scores were compared with two matched community samples and previous studies. Carers were ten times more likely to be socially isolated and quality of life was significantly less than matched community samples. Over 40 % of the carer sample met criteria for probable psychiatric disorder. Comparison of caregiving experiences with a study 15 ye..
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Funding Acknowledgements
Sadly, our colleague Associate Professor Graeme Hawthorne passed away in 2014 and we would like to acknowledge his contribution to this paper and to the Building Family Skills Together Research Group. We would also like to acknowledge the William Buckland Foundation for their support of this research and the contributions of the other Building Family Skills Together Research Group members, Assoc Prof Amaryll Perlesz and Dr Peter McKenzie and Family WorkNet members, Jenny Burger and Dr Margaret Leggatt. A special thank you is extended to the consumers and carers who generously contributed their time and expertise to the research and shared their experiences with honesty, integrity and dignity and their case managers who assisted with recruitment.