Experiences of people living with epilepsy in selected villages of Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces

Abstract

Epilepsy is a burdensome disease that affects a large number of people worldwide. In most developing countries such as South Africa. Epilepsy remains a public health issue. In some African countries, epilepsy causes are attributed to either indigenous or spiritual beliefs. This study aimed to explore and describe the experiences of People Living with Epilepsy (PLWE) in selected villages of Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces. A qualitative approach was employed guided by the phenomenological design, which enabled the researcher to understand the experiences of people living with epilepsy. Purposive sampling was used to select the participants with the most relevant characteristics to the population. The characteristics included PLWE and residing at the selected villages. The population consisted of people living with epilepsy who were eleven in number and living in the selected villages of Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces. Face-to-face in-depth interviews were used to collect data. The researcher used one central question to ascertain the experiences of people living with epilepsy. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse data. Ethical issues were considered throughout the study as well as measures to ensure trustworthiness. Drawing from the results, the researcher concluded that epilepsy is a burdensome disease that affects people of different ages. The experiences of PLWE are influenced by many factors that need considerable attention. These factors include psychological, physiological and social experiences of PLWE. The results further revealed that epilepsy is a painful, burdensome disease. Two manuscripts have resulted from the study and the first manuscript is due for submission to the South African Journal of Psychology. The second manuscript is under peer review in the Health SA Gesondheid journal.