title: Promoting recovery-oriented mental health nursing practice through consumer participation in mental health nursing education.
abstract: Background: Developing recovery-oriented services, and ensuring genuine consumer participation in all aspects of services are central components of contemporary Australian mental health policy. However, attitudes of mental health professionals present a significant barrier. Given the positive impact of education on health professionals' attitudes, particularly when consumers are involved, further exploration of consumer involvement in education is required.Aims: To enhance understanding of the role consumers can play within mental health nursing education.Method: A qualitative exploratory project was undertaken involving individual interviews with mental health nurse academics and consumer educators.Results: Two main themes emerged from nurse participants:Recovery in action, consumer educators were able to demonstrate and describe their own recovery journey; andnot representative,some participants believed consumer educators did not necessary reflect views and opinions of consumers more broadly. Two main themes for consumers were:the truth about recovery,consumer educators demonstrated recovery as an achievable goal; andnot a real consumer, where health professionals to dismiss the consumer experience as unrepresentative and therefore not credible.Conclusions: Consumer participation can contribute positively to nurse education, howeverrepresentativenesspresents a major barrier, potentially enabling nurses to dismiss experiences of consumer academics and educators as exceptional rather than typical.
authors.affiliation: SYNERGY: Nursing and Midwifery Research Centre, University of Canberra and ACT Health, Woden, ACT, Australia.
authors.forename: Brenda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Happell
authors.affiliation: Independent Mental Health Authority, Melbourne, Australia, and.
authors.forename: Wanda
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Bennetts
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tohotoa
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
authors.forename: Dianne
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wynaden
authors.affiliation: SYNERGY: Nursing and Midwifery Research Centre, University of Canberra and ACT Health, Woden, ACT, Australia.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Platania-Phung
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001315:Australia; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D000073038:Mental Health Recovery; D008605:Mental Health Services; D010358:Patient Participation; D011568:Psychiatric Nursing / Q000193:education*; D036301:Qualitative Research
keywords: Barriers; consumer participation; mental health; mental health nursing; recovery; representation