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Loss of control and the chronic mentally ill in a rural day-treatment center
E Yurkovich1, J Buehler, T Smyer
1College of Nursing, Montana State University-Bozeman, Great Falls, USA.
Problem:
What do chronically mentally ill clients consider to be the core variable in maintaining health, and how do they go about doing this?
Methods:
A grounded theory design with analysis of interviews of seven chronically mentally ill clients in a rural day-treatment center.
Findings:
The core variable in maintaining health according to chronic mentally ill clients is preventing loss of control. A process was discovered that clients used to do this.
Conclusions:
Chronic mentally ill clients prevent loss of control by using informal relationships to adapt behaviors, attitudes, and feelings within a supportive environment. If this fails, they turn to formal sources of control such as therapists, case workers, or other mental health providers.