Explaining the care needs of families and patients with severe and chronic mental disorders after discharge from acute psychiatric wards: A qualitative study in Iran

Abstract

Background: Providing long-term mental health care for people with severe mental disorders is one of the major challenges for mental healthcare delivery systems in recent decades, and in the meantime; Need assessment is recognized as one of the key elements of mental health care. Considering the limitations of studies conducted in Iran, this qualitative study was done to explain the care needs of families and patients with severe and chronic mental disorders after discharge from acute psychiatric wards. Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using inductive content analysis. The research environment included government medical centers in Isfahan, Iran, and the research community included families and patients with severe mental disorders after discharge from acute psychiatric wards. Twenty-two participants were purposefully included in the study and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. The inductive content analysis approach was used to analyze the data. Results: The findings are summarized in three main categories: the need for follow-up after discharge, family support needs, and the need for psycho-social rehabilitation of patients. Some of these categories had subcategories. Conclusions: According to the findings that show a wide variety of care needs of families and patients with severe and chronic mental disorders, and considering the important role of identifying and meeting the needs in providing quality care, it is recommended to identify and solve these needs in community-based care planning for this group of clients. © 2025 Archives of Mental Health.