查看文章

Background: Consumer research was last conducted among South African patients with mental health problems in 1997/8 by GAMAIN (The Global Alliance of Mental Health and Advocacy Networks). Respondents at the time suffered primarily from anxiety and/or unipolar depression. 1 Updated consumer research was conducted between February 2004 and April 2005 by Linda Trump of Cat Communications to find out how mental health patients were faring in the current South African environment and to determine which factors were mitigating most against their recovery. The study was funded by Cat Communications and partial grants from AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly and Solvay Pharma.

Method: The survey questionnaire was developed by Linda Trump and checked by Charmaine Hugo of the Mental Health Information Centre (MHIC), Dr. Colinda Linde of SADAG, and Dr. Eugene Allers of the SA Society of Psychiatrists. It was distributed and posted with a self-addressed envelope and freepost address to leaders and members of SADAG, the SA Bipolar Association, Central Gauteng Mental Health, the Schizophrenic & Bipolar Disorder Alliance (SABDA) and the OCD Association. The questionnaire was also e-mailed to the Schizophrenia Foundation, some members of SADAG and members of the Johannesburg Bipolar Support Group. In addition, it was hosted on the Health 24 and SA Bipolar Association websites.

Results: The sample comprised 331 respondents. 75% had a single diagnosis, with 25% having dual or multiple diagnoses. Diagnoses included unipolar depression (30%), bipolar mood disorder (40%) and schizophrenia/schizoaffective …