The integration of treatment and rehabilitation in psychiatric practice and services: a case study of a community mental health center

Abstract

After briefly reviewing the relationship of psychosocial rehabilitation to psychiatric practice, the authors recommend a renewed commitment of psychiatrists to bridge and integrate psychiatric treatment with psychosocial rehabilitation in practice and in the organization of services. They use the case example of an urban, community mental health center to illustrate a strategy for achieving greater integration of these two, relatively independent fields of professional practice. The Center's strategy for integration includes (1) center-wide planning, (2) structuring the medical staff office to support the task of integration, (3) establishing a model of practice and principles of care that supports both domains of intervention, (4) educating medical staff about psychosocial rehabilitation, (5) inter-disciplinary team building, including a definition and discussion of professional roles, (6) expanding services research on psychosocial rehabilitation, and (7) advocating in alliance with rehabilitation colleagues for expanded psychosocial rehabilitation services and their integration with treatment. By taking initiative to forward the integration of treatment and rehabilitation, psychiatrists better serve seriously ill patients and more effectively define their own work and roles.