In their own voices: families in crisis: a focus group study of families of persons with serious mental illness.

This qualitative study employs a focus group methodology to learn more about the needs of family caregivers of persons with serious mental illness during crisis. Changes in psychiatric status or residential placement are always stressful times, for both patients and their families. But no experience has as profound an effect on families as the "first-break." While intuitively this appears to be an ideal time for intervention, few families report that they obtain the supports they need during the early years of their relative's illness. Based on dialogues with families, two sets of recommendations are presented to improve the timely provision of services and supports: one set for families and the other for mental health policymakers.