The situation of family caregivers for people with mental illnesses in Hong Kong.

Family caregiving is very important in psychiatric rehabilitation for people with mental illnesses. By reviewing related studies, the writer describes the situation of family caregivers for people with mental illnesses. Studies showed that only 16.8% of them received psychiatric rehabilitation services. The other 83.2% relied on their family caregivers as the only support in their rehabilitation process. Forty percent of people with mental illnesses were cared for by their mothers. However, most of these family caregivers were fatigued and at risk of mental breakdown.