WHAT DO PEOPLE WANT FROM SPECIALIST MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES AND CAN THIS BE MEASURED IN ROUTINE SERVICE SETTINGS?

Abstract

The level of public satisfaction with mental health services is low. This is evident in adverse media coverage and the Government's view that community care has failed. Some components of a comprehensive mental health service are in disrepair and others are missing altogether. Surveys of those who use services show that many are dissatisfied with the care they receive. One of the actions that services must take to improve their effectiveness, acceptability and public image is to understand better what people want from the services they use. Surveys of service users have identified what these issues are. It is now important that these factors are incorporated into measurement instruments that can be used in routine practice settings. This paper summarizes what service users have indicated that they want from services, lists the desirable attributes of instruments that might measure these factors, and gives brief descriptions of four instruments that meet some aspects of the specification.