The authors of the article, “Psychological impacts of sickle cell disease on families in Basra, Southern Iraq,” focus on researching the psychosocial impact that families experience as a result of providing care to patients with sickle cell disease. The authors begin the research by recognizing the gap between studies on clinical intervention for treating Sickle Cell and studies the impacts of caring for the patients on parents. In effect, the study focused on conducting interviews on sickle cell disease burdens such as financial, interruption of family interaction mechanisms, and coping abilities of family members towards the affected child. The researchers used a sample population of 130 caregivers for people with sickle cell diseases. Participants in the study varied in age ranging from 6-18 months. Selected subjects were exposed to the recruitment of till the end of the year 2013. The results revealed that sickle cell disease exposed caregivers to moderate or severe psychosocial impacts.
The article presents research that involved participants from different regions in creating firsthand information from the affected society. The sample population was selected based on various qualifications in an attempt for ensuring that the chosen population is informed on the study area. For instance, the participants had to have patients with sickle cell disease and should have been registered at Bara Maternity and Child Hospital for approximately seven months in the community (Habeeb, Mea’ad, & Ahmed, 2015). In an attempt of increasing the level of reliability for the findings, the participant in the study should have lived with sickle cell disease patient for approximately one year. Additionally, the patient should have visited the healthcare facility for at least three times before the starting of the interview. In data collection, the researchers used interview questions and questionnaires to receive views and experience of the participants.
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The target audience of the research article is the key stakeholders in the healthcare system, such as nurses, family, and patients. The sample population consisted of caregivers, and they had to convey information regarding the number of times that people have been exposed to the treatment facilities. Caregivers had to record some examples of the effects that they experience by providing support to sickle cell children based on financial issues and psychological impacts (Habeeb, Mea’ad, & Ahmed, 2015). Community members who come across this article are in a position to understand the issues faced by family members, thus creating support approaches to minimize the severity of the direct impacts. Healthcare stakeholders and policymakers may be in a position to identify the severity of the issues that families with Sickle cell disease experience.
The information presented and language used in the article is easy to understand to the readers. The presentation of the aspects considered when choosing participants in the research gives the audience a hint of the outcomes of the study. For example, financial burden and interruption of families and relatives create a chance for ensuring that people in the community understand the causes and consequences of having a sickle cell patient.
From the article, I realize that Sickle cell disease is one of the factors that contribute to the increased rate of divorce in most regions. This problem originates from family interruptions that make some family members ignore the presence of other people in the community. As a result, there is a need for offering psychological guidelines to caregivers. It is also surprising that psychosocial impacts associated with taking care of sickle cell patients differ depending on the level of education. The differences arise from the fact that high education level is associated with securing high-income level, thus catering to the needs of the patients. In most cases, the psychosocial burden for taking care of children had a family member with a similar disease.
The article provides an insight into ideas that should be applied when addressing the needs of sickle cell disease. As a result, it is essential to ensure that there is the development of strategies that could be used when handling the patients. The services need to be expanded to the caregivers through psychological counselling to avoid impacts of stress. Sickle cell caregivers divert most of their resources, thus experiencing stress-related disorders due to loss of income and family disruptions.
I recommend this article to all students who need to understand the indirect impacts that sickle cell patients cause to the family. The material is informative on different psychosocial issues that lead to the creation of stress-related diseases in the community. The information provided in the article is reliable because it takes into account the various aspects such as education, marital status, and employment that could affect the different psychosocial challenges experienced by caregivers. The information provided in the article is evidence-based because it is provided by experts in sickle cell disease, thus providing answers to interview questions and questionnaires from experience. However, the article offers insight and desire for the next research question that ought to be answered. For instance, the information may lead an individual to question some of the appropriate strategies for addressing the psychosocial issues that cause stress disorder to caregivers.
In conclusion, Sickle cell disorders are capable of creating stress to the patient’s caregivers, thus calling for a need of intervention mechanisms. The authors of the article identify financial issues and family interruptions as some of the factors that contribute to stress experienced by caregivers. In effect, healthcare facilities should come up with strategies capable of minimizing the adverse psychosocial impacts of taking care of a sickle cell patient.
References
Habeeb, A. D., Mea’ad, K. H., & Ahmed, B. A. A. H. (2015). Psychosocial impact of sickle cell disease on families in Basra, Southern Iraq; An experience of caregivers. International Journal of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences (IJMPS) ISSN (P), 5(4), 41-52.
