Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

CiteULike is a free service for managing and discovering scholarly references - click here to get started.

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
Journal of Family Nursing
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Request Reprints
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Right arrow Citing Articles via Scopus
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Ward-Griffin, C.
Right arrow Articles by Coatsworth-Puspoky, R.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Ward-Griffin, C.
Right arrow Articles by Coatsworth-Puspoky, R.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Complore   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati   Add to Twitter  
What's this?

Canadian Families Caring for Members With Mental Illness: A Vicious Cycle

Catherine Ward-Griffin, R.N., Ph.D.

University of Western Ontario, cwg{at}uwo.ca

Ruth Schofield, R.N., M.Sc.

McMaster University

Sandra Vos, R.N., M.Sc.N.

University of Waterloo

Robin Coatsworth-Puspoky, R.N., M.Sc.N.

St. Joseph’s Healthcare, Parkwood Hospital

The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive study was to explore the perspectives of individuals who were caring for a family member with a mental illness, with particular attention to housing, quality of supports, and formal care services. Eleven focus groups with family caregivers (N = 75) were conducted. Both individual and team thematic analyses were undertaken until interpretations of the experiences of the participants were inductively developed and conceptualized into a holistic interpretation. Findings revealed that family caregivers were part of a "circle of care," supporting the independence of the individual with mental illness while attempting to protect their family member with mental illness. However, findings suggested that this circle of care led to a "vicious cycle" of caregiving. Three major themes were identified: witnessing inadequacies, working behind the scenes, and creating a better world. Health-promoting family nursing practice and policy implications, as well as areas for further research, are discussed.

Key Words: family health • health promotion • mental illness • family caregivers

Journal of Family Nursing, Vol. 11, No. 2, 140-161 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/1074840705275464
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Complore Complore   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati   Add to Twitter Twitter    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Journal of Family NursingHome page
E. Kolbrun Svavardottir
Excellence in Nursing: A Model for Implementing Family Systems Nursing in Nursing Practice at an Institutional Level in Iceland
Journal of Family Nursing, November 1, 2008; 14(4): 456 - 468.
[Abstract] [PDF]