CMH5004 - Recovery oriented mental health practice - 2019

This unit considers some of the broad issues that are significant in mental health and wellbeing and community mental health practice. The unit will take us beyond the individual explanations of health and ill health to an examination of some of the broad understandings about the courses of mental ill health and the strategies required to improve mental health. We examine the concept of need in relation to populations and take a practical approach to the process of assessing the mental health needs of populations and groups. Two major community intervention strategies to address mental health needs are examined. The role of consumer participation and collaboration and the notion of citizenship are explored in some detail. The unit concludes with a discussion of the skill base required for community mental health practice.

Contents include:

• The policy context of community mental health practice;
• Practice Paradigms;
• Community as a place for mental health practice;
• The concept of need;
• Assessing mental health needs;
• Particular groups and the iInterpretation of need;
• Community based intervention models and strategies;
• Power, participation and collaboration;
• Consumers and citizenship.

Upon successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

1. Describe various practice paradigms and their place in community mental health practice;
2. Critically analyse the concept of need and competently do a need assessment and develop community intervention models;
3. Identify and discuss the skills needed for community mental health practice;
4. Demonstrate a knowledge of the concepts of empowerment, consumer participation and collaborative practices; and
5. Develop a consumer focused understanding of mental health needs.

• Hurdle requirement: Participation in a minimum of 5 Moodle discussions
• Essay (3,500 words) (60%)
• Applied Learning Exercise (1,750 words) (30%)
• On-Campus Workshop / Alternate Assessment (10%)

All assessments must be passed to pass the unit.

Two day on-campus workshop.

Psychology