Impacts of attending recovery colleges on NHS staff
| Published date | 13 February 2017 |
| Date | 13 February 2017 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-11-2016-0035 |
| Pages | 18-24 |
| Author | Amorette Mae Perkins,Joseph Henry Ridler,Laura Hammond,Simone Davies,Corinna Hackmann |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Mental health,Social inclusion |
Impacts of attending recovery colleges
on NHS staff
Amorette Mae Perkins, Joseph Henry Ridler, Laura Hammond, Simone Davies and
Corinna Hackmann
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of attending a Recovery College (RC) on NHS
staff attitudes towards mental health and recovery, clinical and peer interactions, and personal wellbeing.
Design/methodology/approach –Qualitative and quantitative data were collected via online surveys from
94 participants. Thematic analysis and descriptive statistics were used.
Findings –Themes were identified for change in attitudes towards mental health and recovery: new
meanings of recovery; challenging traditional views on recovery; hope for recovery; and increased parity. The
majority felt that the RC positively influenced the way they supported others. Themes relating to this were:
using or sharing taught skills; increased understanding and empathy; challenging non-recovery practices;
and adopting recovery practices. Responses highlighted themes surrounding impacts on personal wellbeing:
connectedness; safe place; self-care; and sense of competency and morale at work. Another category
labelled “Design of RC”emerged with the themes co-learning, co-production and co-facilitation, and content.
Research limitations/implications –It is important to understand whether RCs are a useful resource for
staff. This research suggests that RCs could help to reconcile Implementing Recovery through Organisational
Change’s 10 Key Challenges and reduce staff burnout, which has implications for service provision.
Originality/value –This is one of the first papers to directly explore the value of RCs for staff attending as
students, highlighting experiences of co-learning.
Keywords Burnout, Recovery college, Attitudes, Staff experiences, Co-learning,
Recovery-focussed practice
Paper type Research paper
Introduction and background
With support from the Department of Health, the national programme “Implementing Recovery
through Organisational Change”(ImROC) was established in the UK, with the purpose of guiding
mental health services in becoming more recovery-focussed (Shepherd et al., 2008). Recovery is
considered to be the process whereby people find ways to lead meaningful lives, with or without
ongoing symptoms of their mental health condition (Leamy et al., 2011). ImROC identified
“10 Key Challenges”that all mental health trusts should undertake to better support recovery;
one of these is to establish a “Recovery Education Centre/Recovery College”(Sainsbury Centre
for Mental Health (SCMH), 2009).
Recovery Colleges (RCs) aim to help individuals (referred to as “students”) pursue personally
meaningful lives by restoring hope, increasing skills, resources and opportunities, and
encouraging agency (Meddings et al., 2015). Co-production is argued to be a valuable
component of RCs, whereby professionals and service users create and facilitate teaching
sessions together; valuing the expertise that derives from lived experience of mental health
difficulties equally to professional training (McGregor et al., 2014).
Features vary among RCs, but common characteristics include: a strengths-focus, utilising personal
skills; inclusivity, inviting service users, carers, and NHS staff; student choice and self-referral; creating
partnerships with local organisations that can support recovery (e.g. charities), encouraging students
to engage in the community; a person-centred and progressive approach to learning where students
Amorette Mae Perkins,
Joseph Henry Ridler and
Laura Hammond are Research
Assistant Psychologists, all at
Research and Development,
Norfolk and Suffolk NHS
Foundation Trust,
Norwich, UK.
Simone Davies is a Peer Tutor
and Research Assistant
Psychologist at Recovery
College, Norfolk and Suffolk
NHS Foundation Trust,
Norwich, UK.
Corinna Hackmann is a Clinical
Psychologist at Research and
Development, Norfolk and
Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust,
Norwich, UK.
PAG E 18
j
MENTALHEALTH AND SOCIAL INCLUSION
j
VOL. 21 NO. 1 2017, pp. 18-24, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2042-8308 DOI 10.1108/MHSI-11-2016-0035
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