Scottish Mental Health Service User Research Network

The Scottish Mental Health Service User Research Network was launched in 2011 with the aim of promoting mental health service user research in Scotland through helping to develop partnerships with other organisations, build capacity amongst service user researchers and showcase examples of good practice in relation to mental health service user research.

Research Reports

Organisations or researchers are invited to submit service user research abstracts to the Network.

If you wish to submit a research abstract or have any questions please email:- Chris White: c.white.mentalhealth@gmail.com.

Reasearch abstracts can be downloaded using the attachments at the end of the index.

Index

The views of people on the autistic spectrum on their mental health needs and mental health services; Autism Rights Group Highland and Highland User Group (2011) Service users are frustrated by a lack of understanding of autism, both from service workers and the public. This can include treating of autism as a learning disorder or mental illness, and often results in stigma.   

Being diagnosed with a mental illness; Highland User Group (2009) Many are affected by a diagnosis as much as the mental illness itself. Researchers wanted to look further into how diagnosis affects service users, and other people respond to it.  

Better Felt Than Telt!; VOX, (Healthy Working Lives, Light on the Path, Scottish Development Centre for Mental Health) (2008) Employment helps recovery. Many service users want to work as it gives them a sense of involvement. However, they feel unable to do so - because they fear being unwell or insensitive employers. They often have to overcome negative work experiences, and lost confidence.   

Dementia care provision in rural Scotland: service users’ and carers’ experiences; Innes, Blackstock, Mason, Smith, Cox (2005) Dementia care service provision in rural areas has been under researched. Service users views have tended to be neglected due to belief that they may not self-report accurately, which is not the case. The study aims to listen to views of service users and carers regarding service provision.  

Experiences of the Early Implementation of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003:A Cohort Study; Ridley,  Rosengard, Hunter, Little (2009) This project aims to evaluate how the Mental Health Act has been implemented. What impact has it had on service users and mental health professionals? How successful has it been in increasing wellbeing?  

The experiences of service users participating in a mental health arts and film festival and the implications for social work practice; Morgan Garrett (2010) The study aims to build on previous research to study the perceptions and experiences of service users participating in a mental health arts and film festival; to see what motivates people to participate and whether participation has an impact on recovery and ability to challenge stigma.  

Improving Detention; Edinburgh User’s Forum (2010) Detention can be incredibly distressing for those involved. It is necessary to listen to the views of service users on how the process can be improved.   

Mosaics of Meaning; NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (2010) It became recognised that the campaign to deal with stigma surrounding mental health (See Me) was not really reaching BME communities. There are also cultural and language barriers, which makes people with mental health problems more vulnerable. The project aims to address stigma surrounding mental health in Pakistani, Indian, Chinese, and African and Caribbean communities.  

Moving Minds; Mental Health Foundation (2011) This report aims to understand what increases and decreases levels of self-management of mental health conditions in deprived communities. Secondarily, to develop a model of research that combines service user research and principles of community development.  

Oor Mad History; CAPS (The Consultation and Advocacy Promotion Service) (2010) The project resulted from a desire for service users to record the history of the advocacy in mental health movement, from their perspective.   

Peer support: The help users of mental health services offer each other; Highland User Group (2008) Forms of peer support have been piloted previously, but not continued. Many feel this is an overlooked approach. It was necessary to consult as to what kind of peer support, if any, users would like to see.   

The views of people with mental health problems about poverty and mental health; Highland User Group (2011) Important for service users to express how poverty affects them and their mental health, as this can affect how mental health services are run.  

Psychological Therapies; VOX (2011) Desirable to hear how service user’s views of existing psychological therapies, and how they can be improved.   

Protection or empowerment: Mental health service users' views on access and consent for non-therapeutic research; Ulivi, Reilly, and  Atkinson (2009) A Catch-22 situation exists where researchers need to know whether service users have capacity for informed consent before involving them in research, yet cannot know this without interviewing them. It is necessary to find service users views on consent to participation in non-therapeutic research.

Attachment	Size
Autism(HUG-argh).pdf	169.55 KB
Being diagnosed with a mental illness (HUG).pdf	170.29 KB
Better_felt_than_telt.pdf	156.08 KB
Dementia_care_provision_in_rural_Scotland.pdf	243.93 KB
Experiences of the mental health act.pdf	155.35 KB
Experiences of servicer users participating in a mental health arts and film festival.pdf	246.92 KB
Improving detention.pdf	155.68 KB
Mosaics_of_meaning.pdf	156.59 KB
Moving minds.pdf	157.12 KB
oor mad history.pdf	154.8 KB
Peer support(HUG).pdf	168.89 KB
Poverty(HUG).pdf	168.19 KB
Protection or empowerment.pdf	80.61 KB
Psychological therapies.pdf	153.32 KB