Ng, Roger, M.K., Pearson, V., Lam, M., Law, C.W., Chiu, C.P.Y., & Chen, E.Y.H. (2008). What does recovery from schizophrenia mean? Perceptions of long-term patients. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 54 (2), 118-130.
Abstract (From Journal):
Background: The study investigated the meaning of recovery to eight people with chronic schizophrenia.
Method: A qualitative methodology was used based on a 3-hour focus group. The material was transcribed and analysed into 18 subcategories and 4 categories; namely recovery as a multi-dimensional construct, the relationship of medication to recovery, a sense of hopelessness and helplessness about recovery, factors that promoted recovery.
Discussion: Respondents believed that full recovery could not be said to have been achieved until they stopped medication and had a steady job. The support and care of family and friends were also vital, although sometimes problematic. Independent living has a different meaning in Chinese culture.
Conclusions: Further research directions are suggested as well as ways to change attitudes to the inclusion of medication in recovery.
URL: http://www.sagepublications.com
For more information contact: Roger M.K. Ng, 7/F Main Block, Department of Psychiatry, Kowloon Hospital, 147A, Argyle Street, Hong Kong, China.
Email: ngmk@ha.org.hk
McKay, C.E. & Pelletier, J.R. (2007). Health Promotion in Clubhouse Programs: Needs, Barriers, and Current and Planned Activities. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 31(2), 155-159.
URL: http://prj.metapress.com/link.asp?id=7511608jx37731q0
For more information contact: Colleen E. McKay, Program for Clubhouse Research, Center for Mental Health Services Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 Lake Avenue North, Worcester, MA 01655. Telephone: 508-856-8471. Email: Colleen.McKay@umassmed.edu
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Lloyd, C., King, R., McCarthy, M. & Scanlan, M. (2007). The association between leisure motivation and recovery: A pilot study. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal 54, 33–41.
Background and aims: Recovery from mental illness may be facilitated by participation in activities that provide meaning and purpose in the lives of consumers. Leisure participation can be a major source of enjoyment as well and mental and physical well-being.
Methods and results: This study examined the association between consumers’ motivation to engage in leisure and their self-reported perception of recovery in a sample of 44 Clubhouse members. The Leisure Motivation Scale and the Recovery Assessment Scale were used to measure the association between leisure motivation and recovery. The results indicated a statistically significant association between leisure motivation and recovery.
Conclusion: These findings have implications for service delivery within mental health settings, as occupational therapists may be able to design leisure-based programs more effectively if they can understand the needs and motives for participation. More emphasis should be placed on supporting consumers to re-integrate and be socially included within the community through leisure-based initiatives.
Available: http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1440-1630.2006.00648.x
Correspondence: Chris Lloyd, Division of Occupational Therapy, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Qld 4072, Australia. Email: lloyd@onthenet.com.au
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McKay, C., Yates, B., & Johnsen, M. (2007). Costs of Clubhouses: An International Perspective. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 34(1), 62-72.
Abstract (from Journal): Costs of providing psychosocial rehabilitation services are analyzed . We explored effects of several program operating characteristics on total program cost per year, cost per member per year, and cost per visit using data from Clubhouse programs in 12 countries. We also examined the relationship between program costs and the range of services offered. Findings provide a more complete understanding of the operations and expenses of Clubhouses.
URL: http://www.springerlink.com/content/bq4753482qh4628r/fulltext.pdf
For more information contact: Colleen E. McKay, Program for Clubhouse Research, Center for Mental Health Services Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 Lake Avenue North, Worcester, MA 01655. Telephone: 508-856-8471. Email: Colleen.McKay@umassmed.edu
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Rauch, E.S. (2007). A theory of the world: The writing practices of one woman with schizoaffective disorder, a combination of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Abstract (Summary from ProQuest): This qualitative study explores the writing practices of one woman afflicted with schizoaffective disorder. The research addresses how thirty-four years of writing helped her to form a theory of the world; how narratives can empower and act as therapy; and how schizoaffective disorder is a social, cultural, historical, as well as biological construct. The research discusses the benefits of participation in a psychosocial rehabilitation Clubhouse and shows how the woman's writing sheds light on the lives and writings of others with similar illnesses. Data were collected from the participant's writings, which included diaries, postcards, letters, essays, dialogue journals, and other artifacts. The research coded themes, including the woman's relationships with family, friends, psychiatrists, and psychologists; her health and illness since she was diagnosed; her philosophy of life and religious faith; her activities; and her education. The woman wrote, particularly, because she was an artist who wrote by necessity arising out of her own nature. The research demonstrates how writing can foster readers' empathy and develop the imaginations of both readers and writers of works written under conditions of mental illness. Literacy can suggest ways to create a more just, humane, and empathetic society. Stories can establish dialogue between the mentally ill and those without psychopathology to reduce the stigma of mental illness. Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are found to identify the person with the illness. Narrative therapy and writing can "externalize" the person from the problem so that his/her psychopathology no longer obscures his/her basic humanity; rather, the individual can tell a valuable story. This study considers literacy as more than just reading and writing; rather, it involves a socio-cultural context that is inseparable from the individual's relationships. Considered is the relationship between the poetic and artistic sensibility and the psychopathology of people with mental illness. Writing is found to be a means of documenting and organizing one's life, empowering oneself, and navigating through a mental illness, with the hope of revaluing lives.
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Kelliher, S. (2006). Factors influencing member employment in International Center for Clubhouse Development (ICCD) Clubhouses.
Abstract (From ProQuest): This study examines programmatic factors in International Center for Clubhouse Development (ICCD) Clubhouses in relation to member employment by analyzing employment data from the ICCD's survey. Data related to employment outcomes, program organization and ICCD certification from a particular Clubhouse (Yahara House) in Madison, Wisconsin is also examined. The specific interventions assessed in this study are benefits counseling, medication administration, intensive case management and the presence of a dedicated vocational team. Staff tenure is also investigated in order to determine if length of staff employment affects member employment. Interviews conducted with members and staff from Yahara House are utilized to discern stakeholder impressions of how these programmatic factors influence member employment and model fidelity. Findings do not support a measurable impact on member employment associated with medication administration or reimbursed case management services occurring within the Clubhouse. Staff tenure at the high (5+ years) and low (0-1 year) end of the spectrum is associated with slightly enhanced member employment outcomes. A mild positive association between increased numbers of vocational supports and improved member employment outcomes is observed. Increased numbers of case management supports are found to have a weak, inverse relationship with member employment outcomes. There was insufficient data to quantitatively measure the effects of having a trained benefits counselor on staff. In assessing how fidelity to the ICCD Clubhouse model is influenced by the incorporation of these additional programmatic factors particular emphasis is granted to addressing the issue of medication services occurring within the Clubhouse. While it is not disputed that inclusion of a medication component within a Clubhouse is in direct violation with the wording of one standard. Stakeholders from Yahara House contend that members benefit from inclusion of a voluntary medication component at the Clubhouse without compromising basic Clubhouse philosophy. Separate ICCD faculty noted in their certification reports that while the inclusion of the medication component at Yahara House is not in keeping with the wording of Standard 15, they did not observe a clinician patient hierarchy and there was little to no evidence of a medical influence on the Clubhouse by including this service.
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