THE RECOVERY MODEL

Five key concepts of recovery are:  

hope, personal responsibility, education, self-advocacy, and support.

The underlying recovery values are:

person orientation, involvement, choice, hope, growth potential, and cultural competency.

In the “Recovery Model”, the provider listens closely to the client's needs and experiences and the consumer takes an active part in his or her own recovery as oppose to the “Medical Model” where the provider is thought to know what is best for the consumer.  Outcomes in the “Recovery Model” are focused on the personal meaning behind recovery.

But what is recovery? 

According to the 1999 Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health recovery is having a better quality of life.  It also says the “Recovery Model” is very instrumental in giving consumers mastery over their lives in addition to finding strong family and community ties conducive to recovery.    

When consumers were asked the question “What does Recovery mean?”

28% of respondents said recovery was having fewer symptoms, 11% said having a job was the meaning of recovery (which is also considered to be one of the best forms of social networking), and 6% of the respondents agreed recovery is mastery over one’s own life, according to a survey conducted in 1996 by The Ohio Department of Mental Health through the Quality Service Assessment Network, Inc.

Research indicates those people who personally take responsibility for their own wellness achieve the highest levels of stability, the highest levels of wellness, control over their own lives, and happiness.

What does Recovery mean to you?  What will help you in your Recovery?

By Eva Scholle