Therapeutic engagement: Measuring its impact on the route to recovery and well-being

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Mary Chambers

Kingston University and St. George's University of London, UK

: Int J Ment Health Psychiatry

Abstract

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Admission to hospital regardless of the nature or cause of the admission is a distressing experience involving a combination of both physical and emotional factors. For those experiencing acute mental health problems and admitted to a mental health care facility it is essential that they have a good therapeutic experience and one that will enhance their recovery and well-being. As mental health nurses are the largest professional group caring and supporting those experiencing mental health problems it is important to understand their contribution to service user recovery and well-being. Going back to the work of Brown and Fowler in 1979 when they asked the question what is the value of mental health nursing there has been no reliable or valid instrument that could answer that question until now. Working in partnership with those experiencing mental health problems a reliable and valid tool to measure the contribution of mental health nurses to service user recovery has been developed and authenticated. This tool will give service users the opportunity to measure how their admission to a mental health facility has facilitated their recovery including positive health and well-being. This presentation will describe how in partnership with those experiencing mental health problems a valid and reliable assessment tool to determine the impact of mental health nursing on service user recovery and well-being was developed. The presentation will also consider the professional and political context in which the work has been located.

Biography

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Mary Chambers is Professor of Mental Health Nursing and Director of the Centre for Public Engagement at Kingston University and St George's, University of London. Throughout her career, she has held a number of clinical, managerial and academic positions including coordinator of the Northern Ireland Centre for Health Informatics. She is a fellow of both the Royal Society of Medicine and the European Academy of Nurse Scientists, and an Expert Panel Member of the European Association for Psychiatric Nurses. She has a well-established record of patient and public involvement (PPI) in education and research dating back to the 1980s. Outcomes of her work have had impact nationally and internationally. Integral to this work has been the co-production and delivery of education programs, as well as PPI at all stages of the research process.

Email: M.Chambers@sgul.kingston.ac.uk