Skip to content
Research Article Open access CC BY 4.0

Knowledge and Attitudes of Caregivers’ of People with Schizophrenia towards the Illness: A Cross-Sectional Study from a Regional Psychiatric Hospital in Nigeria

E. A. Uteh Blessing, O. Olotu Sunday, O. Omoaregba Joyce, O. James Bawo

International Neuropsychiatric Disease Journal · pp. 59–70 · Published 18 Nov 2020

10.9734/indj/2020/v14i430138

Abstract

Aim: To ascertain the attitudes of caregivers of patients with schizophrenia comprising their knowledge of the illness and social distance towards people with the illness. Study Design: A cross sectional study design. Place and Duration of Study: Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Edo State, Nigeria, between April and July 2015. Methodology: A systematic random sample of caregiver/patient dyads (n=281) were recruited. Caregivers were administered a socio-demographic questionnaire and, a brief interview on their knowledge of the aetiological factors, treatment for schizophrenia and level of social distance towards people with schizophrenia. Patients were administered a socio-demographic questionnaire and the PANSS. Results: Three hundred and forty-one caregivers were approached but 281 gave consent and participated in the study (response rate was 82%, level of significance value was set at p<0.05 and 95% confidence interval was used). Among the 281 caregivers surveyed, 22.7% mostly ascribed psychosocial cause for schizophrenia, their level of knowledge of schizophrenia was generally average (49.5%). More than two-thirds of the caregivers reported high social distancing. Better attitudes to schizophrenia among caregivers was significantly associated with caregivers who were unemployed (p<0.03) and caregivers whose patients’ had at least 12 years of formal education (p<0.01). Conclusion: Average knowledge of disease aetiology among caregivers was associated with high social distancing. Qualitative studies are required to explore the interactions of these identified factors.

Caregivers schizophrenia knowledge attitudes.

References (20)

  1. 1 The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for Schizophrenia [DOI]
  2. 2 Essential Medical Statistics
  3. 3 Subjective experiences of stigma. A focus group study of schizophrenic patients, their relatives and mental health professionals [DOI]
  4. 4 Community study of knowledge of and attitude to mental illness in Nigeria [DOI]
  5. 5 Community Attitudes to Mental Illness [DOI]
  6. 6 Family Burden in Caregivers of Schizophrenia Patients: Prevalence and Socio-demographic Correlates [DOI]
  7. 7 Attitudes of Schizophrenia Outpatients Toward Psychiatric Medications [DOI]
  8. 8 Caregiver burden and psychotic patients' perception of social support in a Nigerian setting [DOI]
  9. 9 Lay beliefs regarding causes of mental illness in Nigeria: pattern and correlates [DOI]
  10. 10 Perspectives on reasons for non-adherence to medication in persons with schizophrenia in Ethiopia: a qualitative study of patients, caregivers and health workers [DOI]
  11. 11 Medication adherence and quality of life among Nigerian outpatients with schizophrenia [DOI]
  12. 12 Burden of care among relatives of patients with schizophrenia in midwestern Nigeria [DOI]
  13. 13 Attitude towards antipsychotics among out‐patients with schizophrenia in Nigeria [DOI]
  14. 14 The impact of a psychoeducational intervention on family members’ views about schizophrenia: Results from the OASIS Italian multi-centre study [DOI]
  15. 15 Pattern of attendance and predictors of default among Nigerian outpatients with schizophrenia [DOI]
  16. 16 Caregivers’ Attitude towards People with Mental Illness and Perceived Stigma: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Tertiary Hospital in Nepal [DOI]
  17. 17 Attitudes Towards Antipsychotics Among Patients with Schizophrenia on First- or Second-Generation Medications [DOI]
  18. 18 Beliefs about the cause of schizophrenia among caregivers in Midwestern Nigeria [DOI]
  19. 19 Attitude towards second‐generation antipsychotics among patients with schizophrenia and their relatives [DOI]
  20. 20 Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices among Caregivers of Patients with Schizophrenia in Western Maharashtra

Cited by 6

The Perceived Burden Among Caregivers of Deinstitutionalized Patients with Severe Mental Illness in Malaysia’s Capital City: An Interviewer Administered Survey

Halim Ismail, Hanis Ahmad, Haffiz Rizal · 2023

Schizophrenia: jinn, magic or disease? Experiences of family caregivers of patients with schizophrenia in Baloch ethnicity

Fatemeh Darban, Enayatollah Safarzai, Sakineh Sabzevari · BMC Psychiatry · 2023

Knowledge of Mental Illness and Its Associations Among Caregivers of Patients With Schizophrenia

Sanimar S Kochhar, Rakesh K Chadda, Mamta Sood · Cureus · 2024

Showing 3 of 6 known citations — external sources report more than can currently be individually listed.

Related research

Article metrics

Real usage data collected on this platform.

21

Page views

0

PDF downloads

10

Outbound clicks

6

Citations

Views over time

Views by country

Approximate, from request IP at view time — not citizenship or institution. Countries with fewer than 5 views are grouped as "Other".

Traffic sources

Referring site, by host.

Views and downloads exclude known bots/crawlers. Citations combines this platform's own DOI-resolved index with each external source's own reported total — see Cited by above for individually listed citing works. Last refreshed 0 seconds ago.