OBJECTIVE: to analyze the scientific literature on home-based family care of people with
severe mental illness. METHOD: integrative review of 14 databases (CINALH, Cochrane Plus, Cuidatge, CUIDEN,
Eric, IBECS, EMI, ISOC, JBI COnNECT, LILACS, PsycINFO, PubMed, SciELO, and Scopus)
searched with the key words "family caregivers", "severe mental illness", and
"home" between 2003 and 2013. RESULTS: of 787 articles retrieved, only 85 met the inclusion criteria. The articles
appeared in 61 journals from different areas and disciplines, mainly from nursing
(36%). The countries producing the most scientific literature on nursing were
Brazil, the UK, and the US, and authorship predominantly belonged to university
centers. A total of 54.12% of the studies presented quantitative designs, with
descriptive ones standing out. Work overload, subjective perspectives, and
resources were the main topics of these papers. CONCLUSIONS: the international scientific literature on home-based, informal family care of
people with severe mental disorder is limited. Nursing research stands out in this
field. The prevalent topics coincide with the evolution of the mental health
system. The expansion of the scientific approach to family care is promoted to
create evidence-based guidelines for family caregivers and for the clinical
practice of professional caregivers.