Abstract
Mental illness is a serious condition affecting the person diagnosed and their family members. Families are the primary source of meaning in life and socialisation for individuals with mental illness. Caring for individuals with mental illness can affect the physical and psychological wellbeing of the caregivers, as well as their ability to cope with the situation. Providing consistent care for an individual with mental illness creates an enormous burden for family members, such as financial difficulties, lack of social contact and decreased life satisfaction.
The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the experiences of family members caring for a sibling with mental illness, and present specific recommendations to facilitate the mental health of family members caring for a sibling with mental illness in Giyani, Limpopo Province.
A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual design with phenomenological approach was used. The research was conducted over two phases. In phase one, the focus was on exploring and describing family members caring for a sibling with mental illness. In phase two, specific recommendations were provided to facilitate the mental health of family members caring for a sibling with mental illness. Eight family members caring for a sibling with mental illness were purposively sampled to participate in the study. Data were collected utilising in-depth individual interviews. Interviews were conducted telephonically due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Data were analysed by means of thematic coding.
Three themes emerged from the analysis: 1) Family members caring for a sibling with mental illness expressed an overwhelming experience of caring. 2) Family members experience emotional instability resulting from the impact of caring for a sibling with mental illness. 3) Family members caring for a sibling with mental illness expressed the need for support in order to cope with their caregiving role.
Measures of trustworthiness, credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability strategies were utilised to ensure rigour in the study. The ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice were implemented to safeguard the rights of the family members caring for a sibling with mental illness.
KEYWORDS: Caring, Experience, Family member, Mental illness, Sibling