Models Underpinning Mental Health: A Proposal for A User-Based Framework

Purpose: This article seeks to explore the models of mental health used in the delivery of care and the impact theoretical frameworks have on the implementation of practice. It discusses the development of a user-led model of care which is based on forms of practice which enhance the place of experiential knowledge in developing care and treatment, and service users’ responsibility for involvement in their own care. Approach: A conceptual discussion of the literature is presented which leads to the suggested development of a new model of care to underpin the implementation of mental health practice. Findings: The biomedical model of mental health predominates explanations of the aetiology of disease, the development of treatments and the delivery of care. Other models such as the bio-psycho-social model and the spiritual model have also been developed. Moreover, in their practice, professionals often adhere to the traditional model that underpins their professional training. Originality: A user-led model of care to frame the delivery and implementation of mental health support is posited and it is suggested that professionals need to receive training which reinforces developmental rather than routinised learning. Such training would enable them to respond to ways of innovative working which reinforce the autonomy and power of service users in their experience of mental health care and support. This suggests the potential of both a new way for professionals to work alongside service users, recognising the primacy of their expertise, and puts forward a novel emphasis on the kind of training practitioners receive.