I attended an interactive lecture by SEPT on the mental health services in my local area and how the 'Recovery Star' framework works.
The star has 10 domains (each rated from 1-10 by service user/service provider):
1. managing mental health
2. identity and self esteem
3. trust and hope
4. relationships
5. work
6. responsibilities
7. social networks
8. living skills
9. self care
10. addictive behaviour
The service user can rate how they feel they score (out of 10) at the snapshot that they are assessed at, rather than scoring 'on general'. This star is hoped to be used by SEPT to improve care plans to make them more meaningful. They hope to look at the whole person rather than just their mental state and their medication. I am a true believer that a holistic approach is very important to give personal care. This will be offered to every service user, however no one will be forced to under take. The idea of the framework is to show development and to help the individual to improve, set targets and reflect on the progress that they have already made. Also it is important to remember that each service user's star is personal to them; not everyone will have the same end goal. One person may aim to raise their social skills from a 2/10 to 3/10, however someone else's target might be to reach 10/10.
Service users, SEPT members, carers and mental healthcare professionals attended the meeting and had a range of different views on a number of topics. At the meeting there was a large discussion about who should fill out the recovery star. Some believed that the service user should fill out the star with their carer together whereas others believed that the service provider and service user should fill out the stars separately and then compare. Someone else pointed out that if the service provider rated the person as being lower than they thought they were it could be damaging. It would therefore depend on the vulnerability of the service user and the relationship they had with the carer/ service user.
Registered mental health charity 'Mind', has their own version of the Recovery Star. This could help them work alongside SEPT. Also if GPs were trained in how to use the Recovery Star, it could bring mental health services to local surgeries as well as psychiatric hospitals. Carers at the lecture commented that they would find the star useful to use at home whilst looking after their relative/partner. SEPT said they would take this into consideration.
At the lecture there was also a discussion over the success of day centres. Some of the people at the meeting had strong feelings against these institutions saying they were merely containing those with mental health issues and stopping them from getting their real lives back. One service user explained how she has been using the day centre services for the last 10 years and how it had played a strong part in her recovery. She told us how she integrates back into her 'normal' life for 6 out of 7 days but once a week she really benefits being with like minded people. For example, in everyday conversation people asked her what she do for a living; after being out of employment due to have bipolar disorder, it was a constant reminder that she was different. Having the link back to mental health services served as a secure place where she wasn't on show and could relax and express herself.
The different ideas around the day services have come from person experiences; this has shown me that like everything in the world, people are different and will recover in varied ways.
Overtime these day services have improved to provide service users a safe environment where they can interact with others, drink coffee, access the internet and play interactive computer games. In a SEPT day centre in Germany, they offer these modern services to give a comfortable setting to bridge the gap between integrating back into society. They have found that teaching the service users about their mental health problems (e.g. the pathology and how the medication works) they feel more involved in their recovery and that they can be in charge of their own lives. They have also been teaching the service users presentational skills so they can teach others about their conditions and even go on to starting a career in that field. I think it is really important that the service user is treated like a respected adult. The German day centre have seen an amazing 70% decrease in the relapse rates of the day centre users!
I found the interactive lecture a brilliant learning opportunity, it was informative and full of personal opinions and views from a range of different people involved in mental health services, be it service users or providers. As a member of SEPT, I will be checking my emails regularly in hope to attend other upcoming lectures.
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