Mary Ellen Copeland

Contextual Essay : Involuntary Commitment and Recovery:
An Innovative Mental Health Peer Support Program

By Mary Ellen Copeland, Ph.D.

Chapter I -- Introduction

The Vermont State Department of Health is concerned about the recovery and    community integration prospects of people who have mental health related orders     of involuntary in-patient or outpatient commitment.  People in this group often have repeated restrictive orders and are reputed to have lives that are defined and limited by their mental health difficulties. In an effort to better meet the needs of these people and promote their recovery and reintegration into the community, the Vermont State Department of Mental Health funded principal investigator Mary Ellen Copeland, the author of this document, and coresearcher Shery Mead to:

  1. Find out what recovery-oriented and peer support initiatives would help people who have these orders take back control of their lives; 
  2. Design and implement a pilot program based on the findings of the study; and,
  3. Develop a manual that would allow for state and national program replication. (State of Vermont, 2001).

This essay describes the study, called the Moving Ahead Project, and the Community Links program that was developed and piloted based on the findings of that study, including the development of a manual to facilitate the replication of the Community Links program. It includes:

  1. An overview of the project.
  2. A literature review of the issues of involuntary commitment, mental health recovery, and peer support, including the established values and ethics of these initiatives, a historical perspective of past and current recovery efforts in Vermont and an overview of related mental health programs.
  3. A description of the development of the proposal for the State of Vermont to fund the study (Moving Ahead Project) to determine those mental health recovery and peer support initiatives that might be helpful to people who have repeated involuntary mental health commitments.
  4. An explanation of the implementation of the study.
  5. The data analysis process, an overview of the findings, and the process of using the data as the basis for developing the Community Links program.
  6. The design, implementation, and evaluation of the Community Links program.
  7. Responses to specific questions posed by Vermont mental health officials and recommendations for future action based on the findings of the study.

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Mary Ellen Copeland, PhD   PO Box 301,  West Dummerston, VT 05357
Mary Ellen Copeland and her staff cannot address personal mental health problems and issues. We care very much about your concerns but we must focus our efforts on group education, web site, newsletter, and developing books and other mental health recovery resources. For more information on how to get help for yourself or the people you are supporting, please use the resources on this web site. © 1995-2007 Mary Ellen Copeland, PhD All Rights Reserved