中華心理衛生協會

The fact that the chronic mental patients do not receive proper and adequate mental health care in Taiwan is addressed, and the reasons behind are elucidated in terms of the help-seeking behavior of the patients and their families. Review of literatures and, in particular, five articles written by the author and his associates are made, which include: (1) a study of the help-seeking behavior of psychiatric patients; (2) the help-seeking behavior with respect to physical or mental illness in the community; (3) "god and man”: mental disorders and folk healing (case report); (4) the story of Cafe' Cactus: a new way to the rehabilitation of chronic psychotic patients; (5) the story of Long-Hwa-Tang: a preliminary study of the help-seeking behavior of patients with chronic mental illness and their rehabilitation models. In total, 599 cases are included in the above-mentioned 5 studies (112 inpatients, 131 outpatients, 117 community respondents, 22 coffeeshop cases, 72 non-psychiatric patients, and 145 Long-Hwa-Tang patients).
Three-dimension approach in accordance to the bio-psycho-social model is adopted to analyze and formulate the associated problems as well as the pertinent strategies with reference to the findings from the literature review.
The chronicity of mental disorders, the popularity of folk healing, the unique role played by family, and other characteristics in the help-seeking process in Chinese culture are depicted. Cultural accommodation and indigenization of modern psychiatry to the community are emphasized and discussed.