Journal of Torbat Heydariyeh University of Medical Sciences

Background & Aim: Stigma is one of the most chal­lenging psychosocial burdens among family caregivers of patients with mental disorders; especially schizophrenia. In Iran, despite the cultural and social impacts, this issue has been less studied. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the stigma level in the family caregivers of patients with schizophrenia hospitalized in Ibn-Sina Psychiatric Hospital of Mashhad.

Method: This descriptive/cross-sectional study was performed on 300 family caregivers of patients with schizophrenia hospitalized in Ibn-Sina psychiatric hospital in Mashhad (2014-2015) through convenient sampling. The data collection tool was a modified version of Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness scale. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 11.5 and descriptive statistics.

Results: In total, 70.4 percent of family caregivers were female with mean age of 48.4 ± 14.8 years. The mean score of total stigma was 42.6 ± 9.2 (of 68 points) in family’s caregivers of patients with schizophrenia. The highest average was related to social withdrawal subscale (12.4± 3.3) and the lowest average was related to alienation subscale (9.8 ± 3.0).

Conclusion: Due to the relatively high level of stigma in family's caregivers of the present study, it is necessary to pay more attention to this issue. In addition, it is recommended to make society aware of how to behave appropriately with these patients and their families through media and health care centers.