Staff experiences of working in crisis resolution and home treatment

Abstract

PurposeThis paper seeks to explore staff experiences of working in Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment (CRHT). There is a paucity of research in the area and a particular lack of in‐depth qualitative accounts of staff experiences with most research focused on output and outcomes of CRHTs, including inpatient admission and bed‐occupancy rates.Design/methodology/approachInterpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to investigate participants' experiences of working in this service context. Five CRHT workers were interviewed about their experiences, including the aspects of their work that they found enjoyable and those that they found stressful, and how they coped with challenges related to the work.FindingsThree master themes, each with corresponding subordinate themes, emerged from the analysis. These were: “motivating factors”, “stressors” and “coping”. These findings indicated these subjective experiences emphasised the opportunities to make a difference and help service users and build therapeutic relationships. Perceived stressors were understood in the context of a complex service context, operational issues, responsibility for service users, and supervision and training needs.Research limitations/implicationsThe implications of the research for CRHT staff are discussed as well as the limitations of this study.Originality/valueThis study offers a timely development in understanding the experiences of staff working in CRHTs.