Caregivers' experiences in helping individuals with severe and enduring mental health challenges integrate into the community: A qualitative descriptive study in Singapore

Individuals with severe and enduring mental health challenges continued to consume mental health services for an average of 13 years as they needed multiple acute psychiatric admissions due to the challenges they experienced in their everyday activities. As caregivers of individuals with severe and enduring mental health challenges, they often bear the brunt of caregiving through their assistance with activities of daily living (ADL), providing emotional support and ensuring medication compliance for their loved ones. When caring for their loved ones, caregivers often reported psychological stress, social isolation and emotional exhaustion due to stressors such as uncertainty of the future, the lack of support from professional services and the isolation from their own social network and support mechanism.