Families and information-sharing in the mental health system

Family involvement in the mental health system has been identified as evidenced-based best practice in the treatment of people with mental illness. However, family involvement has not been widely embraced by practitioners, and it is suggested that family-blaming may play a role. Confusion around information-sharing policies has been documented as a barrier to interaction between clinicians and families. Therefore, addressing misconceptions around confidentiality may be the gateway to increased family involvement. This research was conducted in two parts. Questionnaires and interviews, both taking place relatively independently of the other, were used as assessment tools related to the delivery of an education module. In order to assess if practitioner beliefs and practices around families can be altered by a workshop, questionnaires were completed by participants prior to the module, and five interviews were carried out after delivery of the module. The education module was presented by the researcher to three mental health teams in Vancouver. The module focussed on information-sharing policies, the experiences of families, and the concept of family-blaming. The interview participants were asked for feedback from the module and asked their views on families and family involvement. The results had concurrence with the literature review, whereby a connection was identified between beliefs about families and practice with them. Therefore, clinicians who found family involvement beneficial to their clients tended to involve them in their practice, while clinicians who believed that family involvement was not beneficial tended not to involve families in their practice. Confusion exists regarding information-sharing policies, and clinicians are interested in having this clarified. The feedback from the module and an understanding of the beliefs of some practitioners will be helpful in planning future trainings.