title: Consumers as staff in assertive community treatment programs.
abstract: The last decade has witnessed the increasing importance of consumers as providers of mental health services. Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) teams and ACT variants, with their emphasis on rehabilitation and support in the client's natural environment, have hosted consumer-professional collaborations. The authors discuss one such program in which an ACT program for homeless mentally ill adults employed consumer advocates (CAs). Consumer advocates were found to have a service profile similar to other staff. Further, there is suggestive evidence that the employment of CAs created a more positive attitude toward persons with mental illness. Issues of role definition, boundaries, support with supervision and the importance of CAs' experiences with mental illness are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland, Baltimore 21201, USA.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dixon
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hackman
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lehman
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001294:Attitude to Health; D015142:Baltimore; D003156:Community Mental Health Services; D003254:Consumer Advocacy / Q000523:psychology; D006703:Ill-Housed Persons / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007587:Job Description; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D017146:Models, Organizational; D010358:Patient Participation; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling / Q000458:organization & administration*; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000078329:Workforce