Design: A descriptive correlational design, utilizing a single point in time within a four-month time frame.

Population/Sample/Setting: Fifty eight residents with schizophrenia and eight direct caregivers were interviewed in eight different living facilities in the Southeastern United States.

Variables: Demographic characteristics, identified needs, levels of function, medication knowledge, adherence, and side effects, quality of care, and psychiatric symptomatology.

Method: Face to face, semi-structured interviews utilizing multiple scales and instruments.

Findings: The profile of a typical resident consisted of a 43-year-old, never married Caucasian male who dropped out of high school and had suffered from a psychiatric illness for over 21 years. Spearman correlational coefficients and stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed that significant relationships existed between level of functioning and the following characteristics: positive symptoms (p=0.0003), negative symptoms (p=0.003), medication knowledge (p=0.0001), and GAF scores, current (p=0.01 ) and past (p=0.009). No significant relationships existed among resident characteristics and resident needs.

Conclusions: This study provided the foundation for further research on the quality of care for individuals with schizophrenia residing in assisted living facilities. Understanding the interactions among symptoms of schizophrenia, level of functioning, and unmet needs may provide a future focus for mental health treatment planning and intervention.

Implications: National and international agencies develop and implement living facility standards that impact the lives of residents with moderate levels of functioning and multiple unmet needs, having implications for both practice and mental health policy.

Back to Chronic Mental Illness
Back to 15th International Nursing Research Congress
Sigma Theta Tau International
July 22-24, 2004