Introduction: Mental health disorders are one of the most common health issues and represent a significant health problem. Mental health problems are the leading cause of disability worldwide. They make up as much as a third of all disability cases. They have a profound effect on an individual's thinking, well-being, mood or behaviour and cause suffering. Involuntary hospitalization is a procedure used to compel an individual, who is suffering from mental disorder, to receive treatment in a psychiatric hospital without their consent. This procedure is one of the most controversial issues in mental dis-ability law, but it is sometimes more than necessary procedure. Compulsory admission to psychiatric inpatient treatment causes psychological stress that impacts patients health. Purpose: Through the thesis we want to demonstrate the psychological hardships that patients face, when they are involuntarily hospitalized to psychiatric hospitals, and to define nursing activities to reduce and manage their psychological distress. Methods: The thesis is based on a descriptive method. Professional and scientific literature in English and Slovenian was studied to gather information. The search for scientific information was enabled through Digital Library of the University of Ljubljana (DiKUL), Medline, ScienceDirect, Cinahl and Google Scholar databases. The inclusion criteria were that literature is fully accessible and that is published in either English or Slovenian and that literature is published from 2007 to 2022. 13 articles were analysed. Results: Involuntary Hospitalization is a very stressful procedure for mentally ill patients. It is often accompanied by negative emotions such as sadness, loneliness, a sense of helplessness and despair. A minority of patients experience positive emotions such as relief and safety. The role of health care providers is very important as it can manage and reduce psychological distress through nursing interventions. Expressing empathy and compassion and showing care for the patient, actively listening, and encouraging the patient in the healing process helps to reduce psychological distress. It is also important to create a therapeutic relationship between health care providers and the patient. Discussion and conclusion: There is evidence that supports the claim that patients who need help concerning mental health issues don’t seek it. They go against treatment. One of the reasons is that they are stigmatised and thus discriminated. However, stigma and mental disorder does not just affect the patients, but also their loved ones.
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