| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 衛生政策與管理研究所 === 92 === Abstract
The World Health Organization (WHO) considers that depression, AIDS, and cancer are three diseases should be taken seriously in the twenty-one century. However, what is the medical quality to be provided today when depression patients are encouraged to take medical treatment? In a few minutes, patients just get some drugs and lack psychotherapy. In this mode of taking medical treatment, what are the patients’ experiences of taking medical treatment in the psychiatric ambulatory department? Is it effective? It is important for us to consider and survey.
Therefore, the purposes of this study are to understand the following questions:
1. To understand the contact experiences and viewpoints of depression patients with doctors (not psychiatric doctor) before diagnosis being confirmed.
2. To survey the experiences of depression patients while taking medical treatment in the psychiatric ambulatory department.
3. To know the depression patients’ perspectives and experiences of interacting with psychiatric medical workers and volunteers.
4. The expecting medical and health system of depression patients.
5. The patients’ expectation corresponding to the actions of the government.
This study uses qualitative research and deeply interviews the patients who are confirmed to be depression patients. The data including interviews of thirteen patients are collected from May to October in 2002. There are five categories of this research: the contact experiences and viewpoints of depression patients with doctors (not psychiatric doctor) before diagnosis being confirmed, the experiences of depression patients while taking medical treatment in the psychiatric ambulatory department, the depression patients’ perspectives and experiences of interacting with psychiatric medical workers and volunteers, the expecting medical and health system of depression patients, and the patients’ expectation corresponding to the actions of government. The results are summarized as followings:
1. The contact experiences and viewpoints of depression patients with doctors (not psychiatric doctor) before diagnosis being confirmed: undeserved road---doctor shopping between different departments, the process of continuously seeking answers, organ direction, and struggle for entering the depression department.
2. The experience of depression patients while taking medical treatment in psychiatric ambulatory department: drugs being the major treatment, inadequate health education information, doctor-shopping in the same department, and the conflict between voice of the medical treatment and voice of the life world.
3. The depression patients’ perspectives and experiences of interacting with psychiatric medical workers and volunteers:
(1) psychiatric medical workers: must possess professional training and characteristics, and insufficient interaction time.
(2) volunteers: elastic interaction time, share experiences, emotional support, and caring for patients.
4. The expecting medical and health system of depression patients: national health insurance paying the medical fee and popularizing the psychiatric treatment.
5. The patients’ expectation corresponding to the actions of government: guidance to find a job and improving disease announcements.
The results discover patients always experienced a long time struggle before they entered the field of the depression department. After entering the depression department, patients experienced unknown drugs and side effects. In the information opaque and unequal situation, patients mostly did not know the condition of themselves. Mostly patients are still in the process of seeking doctors and the information of seeking doctors is from the exchanging experiences between patients.
According to the above results, the author advocates several suggestions: improving the medical and health system, respecting the drug influence on the depression patients, therapy conforming to the best health needs of patients, empowering the medical users, and encouraging self-help groups to be established and changed to mental health advocate groups.
Keyword: depression, psychiatric ambulatory department, experience of medical care seeking
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