Boarding house life for people with mental illness: an exploratory study.

The present study explored residents' perceptions of life in boarding houses within the Central Sydney Area Health Service. A purposeful sample of 14 people with a mental illness participated in semistructured interviews. The transcribed interviews were analysed for lifestyle issues to increase understanding of the factors that impact on quality of life from the consumers' perspective. It was encouraging to find that basic needs were being met, but it would appear that there is considerable room for improvement in quality of life for this vulnerable group of people. The findings of the present study should prove valuable for policy makers and health professionals who provide services to people with mental illness resident in boarding houses.