Abstract
BackgroundThere is a strong association between mental health problems and financial difficulties. Therefore, people who work with those who have financial difficulties (financial counsellors and financial institution staff) need to have knowledge and helping skills relevant to mental health problems. Conversely, people who support those with mental health problems (mental health professionals and carers) may need to have knowledge and helping skills relevant to financial difficulties. The Delphi expert consensus method was used to develop guidelines for people who work with or support those with mental health problems and financial difficulties.MethodsA systematic review of websites, books and journal articles was conducted to develop a questionnaire containing items about the knowledge, skills and actions relevant to working with or supporting someone with mental health problems and financial difficulties. These items were rated over three rounds by five Australian expert panels comprising of financial counsellors (n = 33), financial institution staff (n = 54), mental health professionals (n = 31), consumers (n = 20) and carers (n = 24).ResultsA total of 897 items were rated, with 462 items endorsed by at least 80 % of members of each of the expert panels. These endorsed statements were used to develop a set of guidelines for financial counsellors, financial institution staff, mental health professionals and carers about how to assist someone with mental health problems and financial difficulties.ConclusionsA diverse group of expert panel members were able to reach substantial consensus on the knowledge, skills and actions needed to work with and support people with mental health problems and financial difficulties. These guidelines can be used to inform policy and practice in the financial and mental health sectors.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12913-015-0868-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
There is an association between mental health problems and financial difficulties [1,2,3]
Australian research has found that people who report financial hardships are more likely to have mental health problems [1]
An analysis of Australian coroner reports on deaths by suicide found that financial problems were a factor in 9 % of these deaths [7]
Summary
There is a strong association between mental health problems and financial difficulties. People who work with those who have financial difficulties (financial counsellors and financial institution staff) need to have knowledge and helping skills relevant to mental health problems. People who support those with mental health problems (mental health professionals and carers) may need to have knowledge and helping skills relevant to financial difficulties. The Delphi expert consensus method was used to develop guidelines for people who work with or support those with mental health problems and financial difficulties. Australian research has found that people who report financial hardships (e.g. being unable to heat their home, having to sell possessions, going without meals) are more likely to have mental health problems [1]. A 2012 Australian study of people with psychotic disorders found that 43 % of participants cited financial problems as a major challenge in the coming year [6]. An analysis of Australian coroner reports on deaths by suicide found that financial problems were a factor in 9 % of these deaths [7]
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