Abstract:
The purposes of this quasi-experimental research using the pretest-posttest design were 1) to compare positive symptoms of persons with schizophrenia in community before and after using the symptom management program with family involvement, and 2) to compare positive symptoms of persons with schizophrenia in community using the symptom management program with family involvement and those who received the conventional nursing care. Forty families of persons with schizophrenia receiving services in the outpatient department, Samchuk Hospital, and meeting the inclusion criteria, were matched pair and then randomly assigned to experimental group and control group, 20 subjects in each group. The experimental group received the symptom management program with family involvement for four weeks. The control group received the conventional nursing care. Research instruments included the symptom management program with family involvement; the positive symptoms scale; the Ability to manage positive symptoms scale. All instruments were content validated by a panel of 5 professional experts. The t-test was used in data analysis. The major findings were as follows: 1. The positive symptoms of persons with schizophrenia in community after using symptom management program with family involvement were significantly lower than those before the management program, at the .05 level. 2. The positive symptoms of persons with schizophrenia in community who received symptom management program with family involvement were significantly lower than those of the persons who received regular caring activities, at the .05 level.