Amenities for community support within mental health care

Abstract

After long years of institutionalisation, people with mental health problems often lose their skills and amenities which further hinder rehabilitation. Even though family and the role of friends is very important in this recovery, the focus of this dissertation is amenities required in the community, keeping in mind those people who for some reason or other have no family or friends. This research shows that as long as given the right support from support networks, provided with amenities and taught the skills required people with mental health problems can cope within society. This was shown by interviewing a sample of people who have been institutionalised for two or more years, some of which are now in the community and others who are in either in hospital or in a residential provision. Observations were also carried out and data was gathered from Mount Carmel Hospital records office regarding discharges of more than two years. The general findings of this study were various for the reason that the study was divided into different sections. From the data gathered at Mount Carmel Hospital, one can see that half the sample collected was currently in hospital, many were readmitted after a while whilst a good proportion were never readmitted after their long stay. With regards to interviews, the main focus was how well their personal amenities were being provided, their level of satisfaction and in the case of those in hospital or residential facilities the focus was on their hopes for the future regarding the same matters. The most prevalent themes were stigma and discrimination, awareness or lack of it, lack of opportunities, empowerment, the need for proper training, the importance of family and friends and that of support groups. Included in the recommendation are the importance of good co-ordination, better allocation of resources and the adaptation of successful programmes in Britain and other countries with better services among others. So much has been done in the field of community care, but we must strive to achieve better results in order to provide the best service possible in this field.