title: Mental health services for adults with intellectual disabilities--what do service users and staff think of them?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The current qualitative study was funded by the Judith Trust to investigate service users', support staff and community team members' views of the services currently provided to adults with intellectual disabilities and mental health problems and what they consider to be desirable qualities for staff to possess.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the first stage of the study, two focus groups were conducted with service users who have intellectual disabilities and mental health problems in addition to two focus groups with a variety of staff, all of who had recent experience of intellectual disabilities services. In the second stage, individual interviews were conducted with staff members employed in residential and community intellectual disabilities services. The number of participants totalled 54 (16 service users and 38 staff). A qualitative analysis (IPA) was adopted to identify dominant themes in the discourse of these stakeholder groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The analysis produced a number of themes that include: 'being interested', 'communication', 'competence-promoting support', 'past/present/future links', 'prevention', 'reviews and liaison', 'working with carers', 'looking after staff', 'staff training/supervision' and 'interface between services'.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A number of suggestions for improving services are identified and discussed in the context of current service policies and procedures.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK. b.stenfert-kroese@bham.ac.uk
authors.forename: Biza Stenfert
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Kroese
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.forename: Kuljit
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Heer
authors.forename: Alexis
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: O'Brien
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards; D006379:Helping Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D019989:Persons with Intellectual Disabilities / Q000523:psychology*; D011361:Professional Competence; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D036301:Qualitative Research; D013192:Staff Development; D035502:Trust; D055815:Young Adult