Table 1.
Participant selection for the Focus Group Discussions (FGDs)
| Total of 8 FGDs: Primary Health Care Providers (2), Traditional Health Care Practitioners (4) and Users and Caregivers (2) | |
|---|---|
| Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) | Justification/Selection criteria |
|
Primary Healthcare Providers -Two (2) FGDs Ashanti Region (11 participants) - 3 females, 8 males - Categories of PHC 1 Psychiatrist 8 Community Psychiatric Nurses 1 Medical Assistant 1 Midwife Brong- Ahafo Region (12 participants) - 7 females, 5 males - Categories of PHC 1 Psychiatrist 10 Community Psychiatric Nurses 1 Medical Assistant |
FGDs with PHC Providers included all categories of PHC workers who deal with mental illness (Psychiatristsa, Community Psychiatric Nurses, Medical Assistants and Midwifes). Efforts were also made to ensure both male and female PHC workers were adequately represented. |
|
Traditional Health Practitioners (THPs) -Four (4) FGDs Ashanti Region (14 participants) - Categories of THPs 1 Traditional Healer FGD 1 female and 6 males 1 Faith Healer FGD 2 females and 5 males Brong Ahafo Region (14 participants) 1 Traditional Healers 1 female and 6 males One (1) Faith Healers 3 females and 4 males |
Selection of THPs included all of the broad categories of THPs, including faith-based healers (Muslim and Christian Healers), and traditional healers (mix of spiritualists [fetish priests] and herbalists). A greater number of FGDs were, therefore, conducted for this group. These were purposively selected as they were currently managing patients with psychosis. |
|
Users and Caregivers –Two (2) FGDs Ashanti Region (8 participants) 5 females and 3 males Categories of Caregivers & Users Patients (4) Caregivers (4) Brong Ahafo Region (8 participants) 5 females and 3 males Categories of Caregivers & Users Patients (4) Caregivers (4) |
Selection included users of varying sex and age. Since the team wanted caregivers to corroborate what patients said we included both patients and their respective caregivers in the same group discussion. They were purposively selected based on the patient’s ability to provide informed consent as well as a psychiatrist confirmation of the person’s ability to participate in the group discussions. |
aEach PHC FGD included a Psychiatrist invited from the two regional hospitals to enrich the discussions