McAuley A, McKenna H P
J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs. 1995;2(6):335-42. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2850.1995.tb00103.x.
This study aimed to identify the prevalence of mental disorder in hostels for the homeless in Belfast, Northern Ireland. In addition, it attempted to assess the facilities and support offered from both the hostels and the Health Service to homeless people who have a mental disorder. Lastly it sought to determine whether or not psychiatric hospital bed closure had any influence on the prevalence of homelessness among these persons in Belfast. An exploratory approach was adopted, using semi-structured interviews as the method of data collection. The sample consisted of 12 hostels for the homeless with a total occupancy of 250 residents. Officers in charge were surveyed. The results obtained indicated that approximately 25% of the homeless in Belfast hostels have a diagnosed mental disorder and that hospital closure has had a direct effect on the size of this percentage. In addition, it was found that the hostels generally are not able to offer the levels of therapy and support given in hospital or in designated hostels for people with mental health problems. Responses also suggest that support from Health Service personnel is less than satisfactory. While the findings in this study do not look at the entire homeless population in Northern Ireland, interesting and useful information emerged that has implications for policy and further areas of study elsewhere.
本研究旨在确定北爱尔兰贝尔法斯特无家可归者收容所中精神障碍的患病率。此外，它试图评估收容所和卫生服务部门为患有精神障碍的无家可归者提供的设施和支持。最后，它试图确定精神病医院病床关闭是否对贝尔法斯特这些人的无家可归率有任何影响。采用了探索性方法，使用半结构化访谈作为数据收集方法。样本包括12个无家可归者收容所，总居住人数为250人。对负责人进行了调查。获得的结果表明，贝尔法斯特收容所中约25%的无家可归者患有确诊的精神障碍，医院关闭对这一比例的大小有直接影响。此外，还发现收容所通常无法提供医院或为有心理健康问题的人指定的收容所所提供的治疗和支持水平。回应还表明，卫生服务人员的支持不尽人意。虽然本研究的结果并未涵盖北爱尔兰的全部无家可归人口，但出现了有趣且有用的信息，对政策和其他地方的进一步研究领域具有启示意义。
