Investigation of psychosocial problems experienced by women who assume care-giving responsibilities within the family

Since providing care within the family is generally associated with women's gender roles, the issue of providing care at home is carried out through women's experiences within the family. Taking on the responsibility of care can be carried out voluntarily without question or sometimes out of necessity. Women who constantly live in a closed area while providing care at home constitute the disadvantaged groups of the social service profession in this respect. Women who provide this service to individuals in need of care at home also continue to have other roles and responsibilities at home. In this sense, since the experience of providing care services by women creates an extra task or role for women, it should be a process of balancing the woman's own life balance, ensuring and fulfilling other roles in participating in social life with her domestic roles. In addition, home care services continue to be a product of women's invisible labor. For this reason, they encounter many problems, especially psychological and social. In this context, the aim of this thesis is to explore the experiences of women who take on the responsibility of providing care within the family to individuals who benefit from Home Health Services carried out under the Ministry of Health and who provide continuous care at home, what psychosocial problems and difficulties they encounter and what this process means for them in terms of their own life experiences, and to discuss it from a social service perspective. The data obtained as a result of in-depth interviews conducted with 30 participating women using the qualitative research method were evaluated in four categories: women's domestic labor, difficulties experienced in the experience of providing care at home, thoughts and suggestions regarding home health and other care services, thoughts and suggestions regarding eliminating women's psychosocial problems and improving the care they provide. The obtained data were analyzed using the MAXQDA program. In the conclusion and suggestions section of the research, suggestions were made regarding health practices and social policies. Keywords: Women, In-Home Care, Psychosocial Problems, Home Health, Caregiver