Jakość życia osób przewlekle chorych psychicznie w województwie łódzkim

Abstract

Mental crisis exerts a negative effect on personal, vocational and social activity. Mental disease is often accompanied by factors reducing the quality of life of patients. Another problem is deeply rooted stereotypes and prejudices functioning in the public opinion, according to which people who suffer from mental disorder should be considered insane and often dangerous for society. In Poland, thanks to, amongst others, the EFS funds, it is possible to finance and implement research concerning quality of life of people who have experienced a mental crisis. The aim of the study was to evaluate the quality of life of people suffering from mental disorders from the Lodz region on the basis of eight points scale assessing their personal, occupational, and social functioning. The study included a group of 101 patients with mental disorders. Participants were selected randomly from mental health institutions functioning in the region of Lodz. To evaluate the quality of life in the group of patients a standardized interview questionnaire was used. Total quality of life index achieved the value of 54.2 points from the maximum possible 100. The result follows a relatively high level of support from relatives, no significant discrimination, and the relatively high rate of household wealth. On the other hand, the lower level of the quality of life was associated with lower level of education as well as lower social and economic activity.