Aim: To explore the needs of caregivers of inpatients with schizophrenia in India.
Material: Thirty caregivers of inpatients with schizophrenia participated in five focus group discussions (FGD), where the needs of the caregivers were discussed. The FGDs were recorded, transcribed and similar needs were grouped and ranked according to their order of importance.
Discussion: The main needs that emerged were regarding: managing the behaviour of patients; managing social-vocational problems of patients; health issues of caregivers; education about schizophrenia; rehabilitation; and managing sexual and marital problems of patients.
Conclusion: This study has identified additional needs of caregivers from those found in other studies.