A qualitative exploration of service users’ and staff members’ perspectives on the roles of inpatient settings in mental health recovery

BACKGROUND: Today, international mental health care increasingly focuses on creating recovery-oriented systems of support. This study aims to unravel the daily practice of an inpatient psychiatric ward that engages with persons with complex mental health needs. METHODS: 17 in-depth interviews were conducted with patients and staff of the ward. Data was analyzed by means of thematic analysis. RESULTS: Three important functions of the ward were identified in the participants’ experiences. First, it functions as an asylum, a safe environment where patients can ‘simply be’. Second, the ward is experienced as a particularizing space, as support is organized in an individualized way and patients are encouraged to reconnect with their own identity. Third, the ward functions as a transitional space towards a valuable community life, in which finding adequate housing is of central importance. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that inpatient forms of support tally with personal and social dimensions of recovery and fulfill important roles in recovery-oriented systems of support.