Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services are founded on the firm belief that people can and do recover from mental illness, including the most severe and persistent diagnoses. Psych Rehab providers define recovery not by a lack of symptoms, but by the presence of meaning and purpose in one’s life. Participants in Chartiers Center’s Mobile Psych Rehab (MPR) program choose the recovery goals they want to work on and then meet regularly with their MPR staff to learn, enhance, and practice the skills they need to reach those goals.
Our MPR program can help participants work towards goals in just about every area of their life. Some participants choose to work toward being a more productive and independent resident of their home. Some want to become a more active and social member of their community. Others choose to focus on being a successful employee, volunteer, or student. Many of our participants set goals in multiple areas, and all strive to improve their overall health and wellbeing as they progress toward goal attainment.
Examples of the skills MPR can help participants build and engage in include:
- Living Skills: Budgeting, utilizing technology, preparing meals, cleaning and organizing, and using public transportation
- Work Skills: Searching and applying for paid or volunteer jobs, creating a resume, interviewing, and troubleshooting work-related challenges
- Learning Skills: Time management and study skills, navigating and accessing disability and financial aid resources
- Social Skills: Basic communication skills, setting healthy boundaries, and exploring social opportunities of interest
- Wellness Skills: Improving diet and exercise habits, building a more structured daily routine, and practicing coping skills to manage symptoms and stress
Our MPR staff meet with program participants one-on-one on a weekly basis, and participants can choose to meet in their home or at a community location such as a coffee shop or library. Through customized skills training and the opportunity to learn and practice skills in natural settings where they most need to utilize them, MPR services help build confidence and stimulate growth and change. MPR participants have emphasized that having their MPR staff as a consistent and frequent source of support is especially impactful. Participants have said that MPR “helps me with staying focused on goals and my self-esteem,” and serves as “a positive against the negative aspects of my life.”
It’s important to also understand what MPR services do not provide to our participants, as misconceptions about what Psych Rehab Services offer are unfortunately very common.
Psychiatric Rehabilitation is:
- NOT a clinical mental health or substance use treatment service. Psych Rehab staff are not clinically trained and do not provide any type of psychotherapy, drug and alcohol treatment, or medication management services.
- NOT a mobile medication service. Psych Rehab staff are not nurses and do not have the ability to monitor or deliver medications.
- NOT service coordination or case management. While Psych Rehab staff can teach participants how to access needed resources, that is not the main focus of our service.
- NOT a peer support program. While some Psych Rehab staff may have lived mental health experience, it is not a requirement or fundamental aspect of our service.
- NOT a home health aide service. Psych Rehab staff can help program participants learn and practice living skills, but Psych Rehab is an entirely collaborative service. Psych Rehab providers never complete tasks for participants, only with them. The purpose of Psych Rehab is always to increase independence and self-sufficiency.
- NOT a transportation service. Our MPR staff very rarely transport participants as that would not promote independence. We can, however, teach participants how to access resources for transportation or study to work towards getting a driver’s license.
Like any mental health service, Psych Rehab has a distinct purpose and place within the larger mental health arena. While there are many things that it does not provide, what Psych Rehab does provide to its participants is a unique and valuable opportunity to have professional support in developing personalized goals and then taking practical action to achieve them. Through a combination of education and engagement, Chartiers Center’s Mobile Psych Rehab program provides its participants with the encouragement and assistance they need to not only build critical skills but recognize they CAN recover from their mental illness. MPR empowers its participants to take the lead in their recovery, while having a consistent and dependable teacher and guide along the way. As a former MPR participant said, “With yinz, I have a chance.”
