BACKGROUND: Enhancing choice and control for people using services is a mental health and social-care service priority in England. Personalisation is a new policy and practice for delivery of social-care services where eligible adults are allocated a personal budget to spend to meet their agreed support needs. AIMS: To describe approaches to introducing personal budgets to people with severe and enduring mental health needs, and to identify facilitators or barriers encountered. METHOD: Within four English local authority (LA) areas, purposively selected to provide maximum variation, semi-structured interviews were undertaken with 58 participants from LAs, NHS trusts and third-sector organisations. An Interpretive Framework analysis considered within- and across-site insights. RESULTS: Issues arising from the implementation of personalisation for people with mental health needs are presented under two general themes: "responsibility and power" and "vision and leadership". Key challenges identified were complexities of working across NHS and LAs, the importance of effective leadership and engagement with service user representatives. CONCLUSIONS: Implementing personal budgets in mental health requires effective engagement of health and social-care systems. Change processes need strong leadership, clear vision and personal commitment, with ownership by all key stakeholders, including front-line practitioners.
BACKGROUND: Enhancing choice and control for people using services is a mental health and social-care service priority in England. Personalisation is a new policy and practice for delivery of social-care services where eligible adults are allocated a personal budget to spend to meet their agreed support needs. AIMS: To describe approaches to introducing personal budgets to people with severe and enduring mental health needs, and to identify facilitators or barriers encountered. METHOD: Within four English local authority (LA) areas, purposively selected to provide maximum variation, semi-structured interviews were undertaken with 58 participants from LAs, NHS trusts and third-sector organisations. An Interpretive Framework analysis considered within- and across-site insights. RESULTS: Issues arising from the implementation of personalisation for people with mental health needs are presented under two general themes: "responsibility and power" and "vision and leadership". Key challenges identified were complexities of working across NHS and LAs, the importance of effective leadership and engagement with service user representatives. CONCLUSIONS: Implementing personal budgets in mental health requires effective engagement of health and social-care systems. Change processes need strong leadership, clear vision and personal commitment, with ownership by all key stakeholders, including front-line practitioners.
Authors: G Cetrano; L Salvador-Carulla; F Tedeschi; L Rabbi; M R Gutiérrez-Colosía; J L Gonzalez-Caballero; A-L Park; D McDaid; R Sfetcu; J Kalseth; B Kalseth; Ø Hope; M Brunn; K Chevreul; C Straßmayr; G Hagmair; K Wahlbeck; F Amaddeo Journal: Epidemiol Psychiatr Sci Date: 2018-10-17 Impact factor: 6.892