Abstract:

Objective: In this study, it was aimed to determine the difficulties, needs and coping experiences of caregivers of chronic psychiatric patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: One of the qualitative research methods, was a case study. Individual interviews were conducted with 15 relatives of patients who benefited from the Community Mental Health Center. A Personal Information Form and A Semi-Structured Interview Form were used as data collection tools. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze the data. Results: The average age of the participants in the study is 50.73 ± 10.32; 10/15 are female, 12/15 are married, 14/15 are in a nuclear family structure, 7/15 are primary school graduates, 7/15 of them do not work and 5/15 are siblings of the patient. 6/15 of the patients have a diagnosis of schizophrenia, the average duration of the disease is 17.07 ± 9.95 and the average time to receive support from the Community Mental Health Center is 3.33 ± 1.54. The difficulties experienced by the patient during the pandemic period, 7/15 is not being able to manage patients’ drug treatment and 7/15 experiencing disease recurrence. The caretakers during the pandemic period experienced 11/15 need for treatment for patients and 9/15 need for communication with the patients. In relation to how caretakers managed the pandemic, 10/15 were asking for support from the Community Mental Health Center and 5/15 were unable to cope. Conclusion: It is seen that caregivers are faced with many difficulties. This reveals the need for effective community mental health services and telepsychiatry.

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