Exploring nurses’ experiences of caring for mental health users diagnosed with substance abuse disorder in Gauteng, South Africa

Substance use disorders are highly prevalent and contribute substantially to the burden of disease globally. Mental health and substance abuse disorders are complex, interrelated conditions that pose significant challenges for healthcare providers worldwide. The growing concern is that substance use disorders are related to the development of other mental health disorders, which are often treated at the same time in the hospital, leading to a prolonged hospital stay. The purpose of the study was to explore nurses’ experiences of caring for hospitalised mental health users diagnosed with substance use disorder in the Gauteng province. Methods: A qualitative explorative descriptive research design was used. The population comprised all nursing categories who work in the units/wards admitting mental health care users diagnosed with substance use disorders. Stratified purposive sampling was employed to select par-ticipants. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather in-depth insights from nurses work-ing in mental health and addiction care settings. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Results: Two themes emerged from the data: the nursing staff's experiences and nurses' responsibilities. Conclu-sion: Nurses caring for MHCUs diagnosed with substance use disorders experience difficulties that affect their psychological status and well-being. Contribution: This study contributes to a better understanding of the challenges nurses face in working with hospitalised mental health users with substance use disor-ders. Therefore, undergraduate, postgraduate and work-based training can be explored to mitigate these challenges for nurses.