Exploration of the needs of carers from hospital based-mental health services in Indonesia

Herni Susanti, Karina Lovell and Hilary Mairs

Exploration of the needs of carers from hospital based-mental health services in Indonesia

Herni Susanti, Karina Lovell and Hilary Mairs

Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia

: Int J Ment Health Psychiatry

Abstract

One of the major issues of mental health provision in Indonesia is related to services for carers of people with serious mental illnesses. Very basic and limited services have been offered to the carers. Understanding the needs of Indonesian carers is of key importance before developing appropriate interventions for them. The study is one of series of PhD study, aimed for exploring the needs of carers from mental health hospital services in Indonesia from the perspectives of carers and service users. Focus groups with carers and service users were undertaken to explore the needs of Indonesian carers and how mental health hospital services could help to meet those needs. In total, 9 focus groups were conducted, 7 with carers (n=33) and 2 with service users (n=13). All carer and service user participants were recruited from 2 government mental health hospitals in the capital city of Indonesia. The data were analyzed by using framework analysis, and resulted in 4 themes: Experiences in caregiving, carer needs from mental health hospital services, current support for carers and recommendations for service improvement. The findings were valuable resources to aid in the design of a need-based and culturally sensitive intervention for carers in the country.