Search results for ‘Subject term:"mental health problems"’ Sort:
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Cash in their hands
- Authors:
- COLDHAM Tina, NEWBIGGING Karen, VICK Nicola
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health Today, June 2005, pp.26-28.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
This article reports on a project undertaken by the Health and Social Care Advisory Service (HASCAS), and funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, to explore the barriers to implementing direct payments in mental health and the ways in which take up of direct payments by people experiencing direct payments could be increased. The project used focus groups to facilitate dialogue between mental health professionals and service users about the potential offered by direct payments to give more choice and control to service users. The project also aimed to target people from black and minority communities. Summarises some of the main findings.
‘When you haven't got much of a voice’: an evaluation of the quality of Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA) services in England
- Authors:
- NEWBIGGING Karen, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Health and Social Care in the Community, 23(3), 2015, pp.313-324.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Given the context of increasing numbers of people detained under the Mental Health Act and heightened awareness of the potential for neglect and abuse in human services, statutory advocacy is an important safeguard supporting human rights and democratising the social relationships of care. This article reports findings from a national review of Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA) provision in England. A qualitative study used a two-stage design to define quality and assess the experience and impact of IMHA provision in eight study sites. A sample of 289 participants - 75 focus group participants and 214 individuals interviewed - including 90 people eligible for IMHA services, as well as advocates, a range of hospital and community-based mental health professionals, and commissioners. The research team included people with experience of compulsion. Findings indicate that the experience of compulsion can be profoundly disempowering, confirming the need for IMHA. However, access was highly variable and more problematic for people with specific needs relating to ethnicity, age and disability. Uptake of IMHA services was influenced by available resources, attitude and understanding of mental health professionals, as well as the organisation of IMHA provision. Access could be improved through a system of opt-out as opposed to opt-in. Service user satisfaction was most frequently reported in terms of positive experiences of the process of advocacy rather than tangible impacts on care and treatment under the Mental Health Act. IMHA services have the potential to significantly shift the dynamic so that service users have more of a voice in their care and treatment. However, a shift is needed from a narrow conception of statutory advocacy as safeguarding rights to one emphasising self-determination and participation in decisions about care and treatment. (Edited publisher abstract)
Mental health advocacy outcomes from service user perspectives
- Authors:
- RIDLEY Julie, NEWBIGGING Karen, STREET Cathy
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health Review Journal, 23(4), 2018, pp.280-292.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to address a knowledge gap on advocacy outcomes from mental health service users’ perspective, and the implications for evaluating advocacy impact. The studies discussed highlight challenges for measuring the outcomes of advocacy, but underline the importance of doing so, and of involving service users alongside other stakeholders in co-designing evaluation systems. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses findings from three qualitative studies of independent advocacy involving focus groups and interviews with: 30 African and African Caribbean men who were mental health service users; 90 “qualifying patients” in a study of Independent Mental Health Advocate services; and nine young women in children and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). Findings: A comparative analysis and synthesis of findings from three studies identifies four common dimensions: how mental health advocacy is conceptualised and understood; how service users define advocacy outcomes; wider impacts; and, user involvement in evaluating advocacy outcomes. Advocacy outcomes were conceptualised as increasing involvement, changing care and treatment and supporting personal development. There was evidence of advocacy acting to empower mental health service users, and of broader impacts on service regimes and policies. However, there was limited evidence of transformational impact. Evaluating advocacy outcomes is increasingly seen as important. Originality/value: Few researchers have focused primarily on the perspectives of people using independent mental health advocacy, or on the experience of “advocacy as empowerment”, and none have done so across diverse groups. This analysis adds insight into the impact of independent advocacy. Data from empirical studies attest to the important role independent advocacy plays in modern mental health systems.