The Relationship between Insight and Quality of Life among Schizophrenic Patients

Background: Schizophrenia is an overwhelming mental illness which characterized by positive and negative symptoms. These symptoms may have a negative impact on a person’s social, occupational or interpersonal functioning and his quality of life. Insight in schizophrenia is a complex and controversial phenomenon. Deficit of insight in schizophrenia has been conceptualized in a number of ways and has come to encompass more general unawareness. Aim of the study: This study aimed to assess the relationship between insight and quality of life among schizophrenic patients. Research design: A descriptive design was utilized. Setting: This study was conducted at out-patients clinics at El Abassia psychiatric and mental health hospital. Subjects and Methods: A convenient sample of 120 patients with schizophrenia. Tools of data collection: A socio-demographic interviewing sheet, The New re-standardized Insight scale, and The Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale. Results of the study showed that, more than half of patient with schizophrenia were female which lived in urban area and always they were worry about their future, feeling lonely, feeling hopeless, taking things people say the wrong way, feeling down and depressed, feeling very mixed up and unsure of person self, feeling go up and down, worry about things and sometimes get upset thinking about the past .Conclusion: According to this study, more than one third of the patients with schizophrenia understudy was insight less and more than half of them had a poor quality of life. Also, there was a positive correlation between level of insight and quality of life among patients with schizophrenia. Recommendation: Implementing counseling intervention program for promoting quality of life among patients with schizophrenia and Psycho-educational intervention program should be designed to reduce the negative implications of schizophrenia and to improve insight among patients with schizophrenia