A Study on the Parents of Adult with the Mental Disabilities: Comparison between Parents of the Mentally Ill and Parents of the Mentally Retarded

Seo, Mi Kyung

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
As social welfare practice for the disabled has been changed institution -based to community- based care, burden of primary care takers to the mentally disabled(generally, their parents) was increased. This study aims to compare the parents of the mentally ill and the parents of the mentally retarded regarding social support, care burden, level of permanency planning, and type of residential planning and to finding out service needs of the each group. METHOD: For the purpose of the study, 93 parents of the adult with the chronic mental illness and 99 parents of the adult with mental retardation conducted a survey which included social functioning level of the mentally disabled, care burden, social support, level of permanency planning, type of residential planing and service needs.
RESULTS
Even though little differences of social functioning level was found, significant differences existed between the two groups regarding care burden and social support. Parents of the mentally ill were perceiving more burden and less social support than parents of the mentally retarded. And they were having pooer permanency planning than parents of the mentally retarded. However little difference was found between the groups regarding type of residential planning. Fifty-one percent of the parents were having a plan for institution and 28% of them were having a plan for living with offsprings without mental disabilities as residential planning. The most needed services of all subjects were institution and community living facility. Secondly, it was income security, such as disability allowances, financial support to caretaker, and so on.
CONCLUSION
Parents of the mentally ill are perceiving more burden than parents of the mentally retarded by reason of the fluctuating course, aggressive symptoms, unpredictable prognosis of mental illness. Therefore this study concluded that policy for mental health which secure various types of community living facilities was needed. At the same time, income security was strongly needed for social integration of the mentally disabled. In the mental health professions, it is needed to have more active interest of meeting needs of the parents.