BACKGROUND:Being a part of and contributing to the local community, and feeling as though one matters, works as a facilitator in recovery processes for people with mental illness and/or substance abuse. Current clinical practice has been criticized for having insufficient focus on people’s life in the community. Social inclusion and participation are core goals of FACT (Flexible Assertive Community Treatment). While inclusion of these goals in the work of FACT teams may lead to improvement in services to and outcomes for the target group, greater practical knowledge of how to achieve them is needed. Yet few studies of social inclusion and participation of young adults in FACT teams have been undertaken.
AIMS:(1) To explore the perspectives of young adults (18-29 years old) with complex problems in terms of what they need to feel as though they matter and how they perceive their opportunities for social inclusion and participation in their local communities, and (2) To investigate how FACT team staff perceive their abilities to promote social inclusion and participation, based on the perspectives and needs as presented by their young adult clients.
The overall design is qualitative, participatory, exploratory and phenomenological.
