What does recovery mean for me? Perspectives of Canadian mental health consumers.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to explore the meaning of recovery from the perspectives of consumers receiving mental health services in Canada.


METHODS
Sixty semi-structured interviews were conducted with 54 mental health consumers in Montreal, Québec City and Waterloo-Guelph, Ontario.


RESULTS
Two contrasting meanings of recovery emerged. The first definition strongly attached recovery to illness while the second definition linked recovery to self-determination and taking responsibility for life.


CONCLUSIONS
The prominence of biomedical definitions of recovery suggests the need to find common ground between these two perspectives, if conceptualizations of recovery are to include the views of consumers who routinely experience the mental health system.
Piat
Myra
M
Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada. myra.piat@douglas.mcgill.ca
Sabetti
Judith
J
Couture
Audrey
A
Sylvestre
John
J
Provencher
Helene
H
Botschner
Janos
J
Stayner
David
D
D002170:Canada; D003256:Community Participation; D003289:Convalescence; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012649:Self Concept; D016896:Treatment Outcome