Contents of Community Life Support Provided by Public Health Nurses for Mentally Ill People

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of the study was to clarify contents of community life support provided by municipal public health nurses for mentally ill people.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four public health nurses working in local government regarding the types of support necessary for keeping individuals with mental illness involved in community life. The interview data was then analyzed qualitatively.

Results: As a result of our inductive analysis, 8 categories were identified. These are following categories; tart and concentration of care needs become obvious, confirmation and adjustment of medical continuation, prevention and measurement of symptom deterioration, confirmation and insuring of the family’s help, maintenance of the family’s economic stability, application and monitoring of care services, grasp and adjustment of relationships with persons who are close, support and promotion of independence.

Conclusion: Contents of community life support (8 categories) were following these mutually-related processes: First the introduction from various consultation courses by clarification of needs was done, Next the foundation formation to continue medical treatment and a life was performed. After that the power to become independent was suggested.

Based on these findings, we concluded that the following three types of support were essential for individuals with mental illness: (1) support linked to medical care via provisions of divers, primary-level consultation; (2) support for family members while cooperating with the service of another agency; (3) support to create an environment in which individuals can live in the community without hindrance.