Determinants of Help-Seeking behavior of schizophrenia Caregiver in Indonesia

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue XI, November 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186

Determinants of Help-Seeking behavior of schizophrenia Caregiver in Indonesia

Dahniar, Marty Mawarpury, Suryane Sulistiana Susanti, Hermansyah, Marthoenis
Universitas Syiah Kuala, Indonesia

Abstract: In low and middle-income countries, family-caregivers of patients with schizophrenia are usually the ones who seek aid for schizophrenic patients. Caregivers of individuals with schizophrenia may seek assistance from health facilities for a variety of reasons. The goal of this study was to find out what factors influence family-caregivers of schizophrenia patients requesting treatment.
Methods: Quantitative cross-sectional research with family caregivers of schizophrenia patients was conducted. As many as 162 respondents were chosen using a systematic random selection procedure. Face-to-face interviews were used to collect data on respondents’ characteristics and their help-seeking behavior.
Findings: The range of age was between 40 to 65 years old. More than half were female (54.3%), married (61.1%), lower education level (66.7%), unemployed (64.2%), lower income (59.9%), and lived in the rural area (58%). Statistical analysis found several variables associated with help-seeking behavior, including gender, education, income, previous treatment, and residence (p<0.05).

Keywords: Help-seeking, schizophrenia, Indonesia.

I. INTRODUCTION

In Indonesia, mental disorders are the leading cause of impairment or Years Lived with Disabilities (YLDs), accounting for 13.4% of all YLDs (Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia, 2019). The rate of schizophrenia is nine per mile; nine persons out of every 1000 people suffer from severe mental illnesses (Indonesia Basic Health Research for Aceh, 2018). Unfortunately, obtaining help for schizophrenia patients is frequently delayed. When positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia first arise, people do not seek care right away(Marthoenis, Aichberger, & Schouler-Ocak, 2016).
Mental health literacy is linked to the caregiver’s choice of mental health help (Manumba &Hamid, 2020). Low mental health literacy leads the families to take the schizophrenia patients to the alternative medical practitioners, with mental health professionals being the last option(Hyland et al., 2014; Yalvac et al., 2017). Patients with mental illnesses are referred to modern health care clinics after traditional medicine has failed them(Marthoenis et al., 2016).

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