Browsing by Author "Williams, Beatrice Dwumfour"
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- ItemExperiences of reintegration and homelessness among mental health care users who have been treated and discharged from the Accra Psychiatric Hospital – A qualitative study(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-12) Williams, Beatrice Dwumfour; Skeen, Sarah; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Psychology.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Reducing homelessness and challenges associated with social reintegration among MHCUs is of core interest to health care providers. However, it appears attempts at reducing homelessness while socially integrating MHCUs have been fraught with more complications than anticipated. Aims and objectives therefore were to (1) explore perceptions and experiences of MHCUs‘ homelessness after they have been treated and discharged from the Accra Psychiatric Hospital in Ghana; (2) gain an understanding of the challenges of reintegration of MHCUs back into their families and societies after discharge from mental hospitals; and (3) explore issues, which may support or be a barrier to reintegration including family factors (support, resources), mental health history and beliefs around illness, and access to mental health services. Using a descriptive qualitative method, 15 MHCUs were purposively sampled and interviewed from the Accra Psychiatric hospital. This included 7 males and 8 females within the ages of 21 and 69 (mean age of 46.6 years). From framework analysis four (4) major themes and twelve (12) sub-themes were identified as the experiences of homelessness among MHCUs who have been treated and discharged from the Greater Accra Psychiatric hospital. With the first major theme – Individual factors – issues affecting homelessness and reintegration such as the issue sense of worth/belongingness, and concerns for health/wellbeing after discharge were found. The second major theme – family factors – also revealed factors such as the lack of will or readiness of family, marginalization from family, issue of stigma and financial constraints as affecting homelessness and reintegration. The third theme was community factors where subthemes - general misconceptions about mental illness and stigma with marginalization were found. Finally, the fourth major theme - institutional factors – with subthemes - poor admission and discharge procedures, lack of proximal mental health facility/service and material benefits from the psychiatric hospital was found. These findings support most literature reviewed for the study and is well explained by the Afrocentric Worldview. Implications are thoroughly discussed. Key words: homelessness, social reintegration, barriers and facilitators