Factors Influencing the Delivery of Mental Health Services in Rakai District Hospitals.

Abstract

The study of the factors influencing the delivery of mental health services in Rakai district hospitals was conducted in Rakai, Kalisizo and Kakuuto Hospitals. This was after realizing that mental illness occurs among residents of Rakai district where by some patients are admitted and treated in general wards while other patients are seen wondering on the streets and even in the rural community

The broad objective was to determine the factors influencing the delivery of mental health services in Rakai district hospitals.

The study employed a cross-sectional descriptive study design was used with closed questions to obtain information from the respondents. The study population was constituted by health workers (Nurses and Clinicians) and care takers or family members of the mentally ill patients. Purposive sampling method was employed to select the health workers who attended additional training in mental health. Two questionnaires were used to collect the data, one for the general population of family members and another for the health workers. Respondents of a bigger percentage believed that People with mental illnesses can be treated like any other suffering from other physical illnesses which indicates that they have a changed perception towards mentally ill patients .This could have resulted from the health education given to them and it is also supported by the percentage of those who agreed that there is health education given to them in the community by health workers. On the other hand the biggest percentage were neutral about the same which implies that they did not know about the health education given or did not have a positive implication about it.

The study portrayed that family members of the mentally ill patients are not supportive to them which would contribute to either a fair or poor mental health service delivery. This is so because care takers spend the greatest time with the patients and so for the service delivery to be success full they should be supportive and thus work hand in hand with the health workers.

The respondents disagreed with the phrase that mental illness is considered as any other kind of illness which is indicative of external stigma and likely to consequently make victims (patients) not to utilize services.

In the study it was realized that people with mental illnesses can be treated like any other suffering from other physical illnesses which indicates that they have a changed perception towards mentally ill patients. Health workers favor patients of their own culture which contributes to poor service delivery and discourages the mentally ill patients or even their care takers to seek for hospital services.Longer duration of waiting time which could also result into shunning away from mental health services from the hospital. This would have resulted from either small sized workforce or duty allocation plans.

The managers need to create awareness to the community as regards when health education is given and help them understand the implication