Klaipėdos universitetas

The scientific article analyses the subjectively perceived quality of life of adult patients with mental and behavioural disorders, and its relationship to the certification of day care institutions according to the EQUASS quality implementation system and the links with health services provided to adults with disabilities. The aim of the research is to investigate the correlations between the subjectively perceived quality of life of patients with mental and behavioural disorders and the health services provided. The article presents a research study involving 13 respondents (seven men and six women) with mental and behavioural disorders. Qualitative research with the in-depth interview method was applied. The respondents ranged in age from 20 to 48 years (the mean age was 32), all of them had attended the day care centre for from one to 20 years (the average attendance was 7.5 years). The research data were processed using narrative analysis. The research results revealed that adults with mental and behavioural disorders perceive the health system integratively. The essential triangulation that influences the assessment of their subjectively good quality of life was identified: the characteristics of the person himself/herself, the efficiency of services provided, and the professionalism of the employee. It was also found that for respondents receiving inpatient services for ten years or more, the subjectively perceived quality of life is related to social participation in the community. It was also identified that adults with mental disabilities still face stigmatisation; therefore, it is necessary to legally ensure the context of their social participation and valorisation. The research revealed that medical and social services for patients with mental and behavioural disorders require closeness: a person after in-patient treatment and receiving additional psychosocial rehabilitation services focuses on the valorisation of his/her role in society and social participation.

The goal of this article is to analyze the challenges that arise from stigma and that relatives of people with Schizophrenia face in their relationships in primary social network. Schizophrenia does not only change everyday life and relationships of the ill but also of their relatives. This topic is not researched in Lithuania. Meanwhile in the international context, the biggest attention is paid to the subjective and objective burden that relatives of the people with Schizophrenia face, leaving aside the changes and dynamics in their relationships. Therefore, in this article the influence of the stigmatization on the relationships in the closest environment of patient is discussed. In order to achieve this goal, qualitative research has been completed and 15 half-structured interviews with the people who have relatives, who suffer from Schizophrenia, were carried out. The relation to the person with Schizophrenia varied according to the individual cases – some of them were spouses, some where children, parents, siblings or further relatives. The results of the research reveal that Schizophrenia causes complex emotional experiences of patient’s family members, and gives an effect on relationships within the family, as well as on relationships of the ill and his family members with further relatives, friends, neighbors and colleagues.