Community mental health work – WHO recommendations and the perspective of people experiencing mental health problems

Abstract

This article was written in response to the publication by the World Health Organization of a document containing recommendations and a toolkit for promoting mental health and addressing the problems of people with mental disorders (Mental Health Gap Action Programme – mhGAP). The conclusions in the WHO proposal were compared with the perspective of people in mental crisis, which was reconstructed through qualitative research (in the interpretative paradigm). The analysis of the empirical material, which consisted of 35 autobiographical narrative interviews with people who have experienced mental disorders, showed that the WHO proposals correspond to the needs declared by the people struggling with mental problems. The compliance concerns both the expected fields of action (fight against stereotypes, prevention, health promotion) and methods (activities in the residential environment of people in need of support). At the same time, however, the analysis revealed a number of elements worth noting when orienting future community mental health work. These elements include: the increasing role and importance of people experiencing mental disorders in the orientation of action, strengthening community co-creation with people experiencing a mental disorder, moving away from one-sided teaching and training towards collaborative learning.