Bipolar Qualitative Study

Bipolar Disorder and Quality Care

Mental illness has become more prevalent to the nursing world. Bipolar disorder is one of the more common mental illnesses that affect many of the patients. It is a chronic disease with recurring episodes of mania and depression that can lasts for days to months. These symptoms can have a negative impact on the patient’s life. A person can feel overwhelmed, a loss of control, loss of autonomy, and feeling flawed after an episode of bipolar disorder. A qualitative study was performed to research the ways that bipolar disorder impacts a patient’s life and day to day living.
Problem Statement
Patients have many problems controlling their bipolar disorder. Medication can be effective in the acute stage; however evidence suggests patients do not have a full recovery. “Only 40% maintain their pre-morbid
level of functioning, 25-35% experience partial impairment and 25-35% have profound functional deficits” (Crowe, 2011). Patients not only have to deal with side effects of their medications, but also try to go back to their daily life while recovering from a bipolar episode. “The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of bipolar disorder on those people with this diagnosis” (Crowe, 2011).
Study Purpose and Research Questions
The author of this study wanted to focus on how a bipolar patient felt during and after an episode and how to regain their life.
Other studies have been performed regarding mental illness and bipolar disorder; however this author felt it necessary to describe the subjective feelings and voices of the actual patients themselves. “This study aimed to examine how patients with bipolar disorder, currently receiving community mental health treatment, describe its impact on their life” (Crowe, 2011). This study aimed to help nurses and hospital professionals understand that a collaborative approach was necessary to treat these patients. Research questions include “how has the diagnosis of bipolar disorder impacted your life”, “how have your moods impacted on you growing up”, “how have your moods impacted on school/work”, “how have your moods impacted on establishing direction in your life and on your sense of who you are as a person”, and “how have your moods impacted on your relationships with others” (Crowe, 2011). The qualitative method was chosen because it gives a closer and more subjective look into the life of a bipolar
patient.
Literature Review
The author of this study cited a few other studies in order to gain insight into this study. A study that intended to gain insight on the impact of mental disorders was cited along with another study that “identified that bipolar disorders creates experiences of confusion, contradiction and self- doubt as a consequence of the fluctuating mood states” (Crowe, 2011). Mental health disorders, especially bipolar disorder are typically poorly understood by nurses according to these studies. The author of this study evaluated that the previous studies lacked the subjective point of view from the bipolar patients themselves. Crowe intended for nurses to understand how these patients feel and how the disorder impacts their lives. Based off of the other literature provided in this study, Crowe has a logical argument in stating that “because of the complexity and enduring nature of the disorder there is a pressing need at both personal and service delivery levels to have an in-depth understanding of its impact” (Crowe, 2011). Some limitations of this study include its size and that most participants were female. It was a small study whose participants’ volunteered to be a part of it. Even though the majority of the patients were female, bipolar disorder is not gender biased. It can affect men or women equally.
Conceptual/ Theoretical Framework
The perspective obtained from this study is that of bipolar patients have problems maintaining their daily life after an acute episode. “All participants described difficulties managing the symptoms of the disorder in manic, depressive and mixed mood states” (Crowe, 2011). “For most participants it was not only the symptoms that impacted on their lives, but also the response of others to those symptoms” (Crowe, 2011). A specific framework was not developed from this study; however the author included a diagram to show the progression of the subject’s feelings after an acute episode. At the end of the diagram all arrows point to feeling out of control, overwhelmed, loss of autonomy, and feeling flawed. “The implications of this for clinical practice is that nurses have a significant role to play in promoting self- management of bipolar disorder to enhance the person’s sense of control of their lives” (Crowe, 2011).
Conclusion
Bipolar disorder is very prevalent and very important for nurses to understand. These patients feel overwhelmed and helpless after an episode whether it is manic, depressed, or mixed mode. To better understand and learn how to help these patients cope is a necessity for current and future nurses. A collaborative approach among health providers to facilitate these patients into obtaining a normal functioning life is imperative and necessary.

References
"Bipolar Disorder Daily News Blog." : Bipolar Disorder in Women. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 May 2013.
Crowe, M. M., Inder, M. M., Carlyle, D. D., Wilson, L. L., Whitehead, L. L., Panckhurst, A. A., & ... Joyce, P. P. (2011). Feeling out of control: a qualitative analysis of the impact of bipolar disorder. Journal Of Psychiatric & Mental Health Nursing, 19(4), 294-302. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2850.2011.01786.x
"NAMI - The National Alliance on Mental Illness." NAMI. NAMI, n.d. Web. 18 May 2013.