Exploring the needs of service users involved in planning and delivering mental health services and education - Mini Project Summary
AIM
This study was funded by the Health
Sciences and Practice Subject Centre of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) to
explore the needs of mental health service users (including carers), who may
wish to become more involved in mental health nursing education and service
delivery. There is a strong national drive towards involving service users in
mental health curriculum and service delivery and the pedagogical underpinnings
of service user involvement has been the focus of this study.
METHODS
The project, with the support and advice of service users, students and colleagues designed and implemented a data gathering exercise that included semi-structured focus groups and talking wall events (see appendix 1). This allowed for a creative and wide variety of responses from service users and carers on what they identified as needs or requirements in place for them to become more involved in education and services. An ethno methodological analytical approach was used to identify some of the taken for granted assumptions that were considered important within the culture of mental health research, services and education. These were identified following analysis as Universality, Diversity and Recovery.
RESULTS
Universality of shared goals based upon trust
Participants suggested that there was a need for information, time and space to share goals and ideas and to benefit from a shared understanding or trust in the function of becoming more involved. If this is not clear then tokenism is often the result and does not always lead to recovery or change. Involvement should not therefore be a tick box exercise where attendance is the main function but an activity with shared and meaningful outcomes for recovery clearly defined.
Diversity in recognising individual needs
The participants identified the need for there to be greater flexibility when meetings / consultations were arranged. This was required in order to allow universality and recovery to occur and to respect individual differences to involvement such as resources, ability to concentrate, speed reading documents, transport, language, electronic mailing of documents and other barriers that may arise. Without this recognition of diversity, service user involvement would be no more than a training exercise to assimilate rather than respect the subjective experience.
Recovery through development of the self and /or the organisation
It was recognised that whilst individual recovery or self-development is possible without outside help there can be a stronger voice or power if people come together in a group to develop themselves and the service. Participants suggested that recovery of themselves and the service was a fundamental need or requirement for being more involved and identified that this must be based upon the universal hope that they shared a common purpose in coming together as a supportive group.
EVALUATION
The above categories were devised from analysis of the data provided by mental health service users and carers to uncover the collective subjective meaning of service user involvement. Whereas there have been many publications produced that encourage public service organisations to involve service users and carers, many have identified and addressed the needs of the organisation in this development by exploring how-are-we-going-to do-it rather than exploring what-do-people-need to become more involved.
OUTCOME PRODUCTION
This project with support from the literature has identified that there are issues that if not addressed will continue to impede service user involvement in mental health services and education. The project has also developed a more flexible method of data collection in the “talking-wall” which enabled the involvement of the harder to reach participants such as full time carers.
The results of this project were developed to inform a Service User Involvement Guidance Toolkit outlining the above needs and possible role definitions when developing service user involvement in mental health education and services. The toolkit is intended to assist and inform the teaching or pedagogical development of service user involvement and empowerment. (Appendix 2 and 3)
ACKNOWLDEGMENTS
Many thanks to all those people who kindly took the time to comment and provide feedback on this project including student nurses, service users and carers and supervisors. In particular, service user organisations who kindly allowed me into their sacred space and culture, with respect, trust and hope.
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