Browsing by Author "Spiro, Monica"

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    Illness models of relatives of African psychiatric patients : implications for a family-based service
    (1991) Spiro, Monica; Swartz, Leslie
    This study explores the illness models and service requests of relatives of 30 African psychiatric patients. Relatives' perceptions of illness and expressed needs were elicited with a view to developing a more contextual understanding of disorder, and to obtaining an indication of interest in family-based services. The sample was selected from relatives who visited patients at the hospital over a 3 month period. Face-to-face interviews of approximately an hour in duration were conducted. Results indicated that relatives held a variety of explanatory models to understand their family members' conditions. Although many of their beliefs were at variance with the biomedical model of illness, they nevertheless overwhelmingly supported the notion of the establishment of family-based / services within the existing health care system. Implications for strategies of clinical care, as well as theoretical implications are discussed.