Heart stones: mental health service users' perspective of a respite care service

Abstract

This thesis explores the setting up of a non-government organisation's respite service for adults who have a mental health diagnosis. The service provides time out and a break for people who live in the community, usually on their own. The philosophy behind the approach to the service is that as mental health professionals we can support individuals' positive shift within themselves by focusing on the positive and healthy aspects of their life. The question this research explores is 'what is the lived experience of the people who have used the service?'. The interpretation of their experience is arrived at using a phenomenological hermeneutic method of inquiry informed by van Manen. Four participants were asked about their experiences of the respite service and six key themes emerged from the data analysis. The lived experience of respite is influenced by the experiences of appreciative-ness, safe-ness, letting go-ness, weekend-ness, re-meeting-ness, and at home-ness and these together are the experience of Respite-ness. The interpretation of their stories is compared with the researcher's assumptions and the beliefs and values that lie behind the setting up of the service. There is a discussion balancing the interpretation of the participants' lived experience of respite with the reviewed literature and philosophy that underlies the approach that the service uses. As a mental health nurse this study has given me the opportunity to receive feedback from service users regarding a service that was developed, influenced by my personal beliefs and values. This helped me reflect on my attitudes, beliefs, and the impact that they have on my practice.