Psychosocial distress associated with lived experiences of teenage mothers in a selected rural hospital in Collins Chabane Local Municipality, Vhembe District in Limpopo province

Abstract

Various studies conducted show that teenage mothers experience adversities such as depression and stigmatization. The main aim of the study was to explore psychosocial distress associated with lived experiences of teenage mothers in Malamulele rural hospital in Collins Chabane Local Municipality, Vhembe District in Limpopo province. The study adopted a qualitative phenomenological research strategy as well as a descriptive phenomenological research design. The population of the study were teenage mothers aged between 15 and 19 years. The researcher used non-probability sampling method to select participants purposively. A total of 15 participants were selected, and, the sample size was determined by data saturation. An interview guide was designed for data collection using semi-structured, face to face interviews. The simplified five step version of Hycner’s explicitation process guided the data analysis process. Ethical considerations were employed throughout the study. Four themes emerged from analysing the participants’ interview data. These themes include psychosocial and emotional distress, causes of distress, effects of distress and coping resources used by teenage mothers. Recommendations of the study were based on the findings of the study. The study concludes that psychosocial distress among teenage mothers is associated with ill-treatment by healthcare providers.