A new mental health attitude

The 1975 Oscar-winning film "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" explored the revolutionary idea that mental patients might actually want to have a major say in their own treatment.

Guess what?

Since January, Central Plains Center has been working to make that a reality.

"The attitude is changing across the board here," explains Sherri Reid, chief services officer. "And it's from the top down, with (executive director) Ron Trusler serving as our sponsor."

The 180-degree shift in attitude means that Central Plains Center Adult Mental Health Services clients no longer will be confronted with the once-typical sterile, clinical approach when reaching out for help. Instead of a "treatment plan" with its lists of medications, therapy times, session times, etc., Central Plains clients will be encouraged to help develop their own "recovery plan." Key parts of the plan will be self-generated goals and objectives.

Family members and friends will be included as part of the client's recovery team and encouraged to help develop and participate in therapy and other treatment.

"Mental illness is really more common than most people are willing to admit," Trusler explained during a recent weekly meeting of the center's "change team."

"During any 12-month period, roughly 1-in-4 adults could be diagnosed with some form of mental illness," he pointed out.

While many have a hard time asking for help, Trusler said almost everyone needs help now and then. And, by shifting the focus away from treatment and to recovery, those receiving the center's services should feel more empowered by having the focus now on their strengths, assets and natural supports.

"By shifting the focus away from treatment and to recovery, we're asking our consumers to begin thinking about what they want to get out of life," Reid said. "We're putting them in the driver's seat."

The center's change committee meets every Tuesday, Reid said, and at least once monthly confers and trains with Via Hope (viahope.org).

"Central Plains is currently one of 10 community mental health centers in Texas involved in this learning community (Via Hope) that seeks to promote this recovery-oriented system of services," she said. "Recovery for people with mental illness is the concept that even though someone has been diagnosed with a mental illness, they can still live a life that is meaningful and successful."

The center's new Peer Provider Program is a pivotal part in this transformation. A peer provider, Reid said, is someone who has self-disclosed as having a mental illness and who seeks to help others who have been diagnosed. The center currently has two volunteer peer providers - one in Muleshoe and the other in Plainview - who are able to give encouragement, hope, assistance and guidance that aids others in their own recovery.

The peer provider in Plainview is Daphne Manz. She and her twin sister, Deborah Pursley of Duncanville, grew up in Plainview as the children of Dr. Herman J. and Doris Spann Harvis.

After living in the Dallas area for about 30 years and going through a "difficult divorce," Manz retired and returned to Plainview to care for her elderly parents. Her dad, a longtime local family physician, died in 2004 at age 90 after suffering from Parkinson's disease. Her mother also was 90 when she died in April 2010 from cancer. Manz lives in the family home and owns farmland in the area.

"I was looking for something to do and was inspired to help others," she explained.

Manz wasn't diagnosed as being bipolar until age 50, and by then she had already established her own coping techniques.

"I've been receiving (mental health) services for about 10 years," she said.

Now in recovery and with her specialized training, Manz is in a unique position to help other Central Plains consumers with their own recovery.

As Via Hope explains, peer providers or specialists are "individuals who have been diagnosed with a mental illness, are in recovery and use their life experiences to assist other individuals in their own recovery." To be certified, peer providers receive specialized training to provide them with necessary additional skills.

Kicked off at a state conference in January, the peer provider program is still in its infancy, Reid said. And while Central Plains has two peer providers on board, the program could expand.

"This entire process is designed to make the consumer more comfortable while helping us see them as individuals," she said.

It will make the treatment and recovery process more open by emphasizing that the process is a two-way street, Reid explained.

"The clients are encouraged to take a more active role in their own recovery. By changing the focus away from treatment and to recovery, everyone realizes that there is more involved in recovery than just taking medication."

Reid added that with the new team approach, "we're working from a strength basis instead of focusing on weaknesses. Treatment outcomes are much better when they have a realistic view of ‘I can do this.' And it helps them realize that they can do this, and do it well."

To help explain how things are changing at Central Plains, the center is working on an explanatory video that clients can view while in the waiting rooms of its various facilities. Made possible through a grant from the Llano Estacado Alliance for Families, the video will include testimonials from Central Plains clients. It should begin airing this summer and likely will be available online with links from various community Web sites.

When Manz returned to Plainview from Dallas, she experienced a heavy dose of culture shock. In Dallas she found that it was easy to get lost in the system, while in Plainview she found a more personalized medical and support system. The new focus on the individual and their recovery plan can only be an enhancement.

As Trusler explained, Central Plains Center serves residents in a nine-county service area - Bailey, Parmer, Castro, Swisher, Briscoe, Lamb, Hale, Floyd and Motley.

"There are 39 centers like us in Texas, and we are one of the smaller ones which allows us to provide more personalized service," he said. "While a center like Dallas might serve several thousand adults each year, we serve about 500."

Manz has found that mental illness is no longer a taboo subject. Instead, people are more willing to discuss it openly than in the past.

"Through the years I taught, worked in sales and recruiting, and I was never asked about my background," she said. "We all have our own strengths and weaknesses, and we hope to build on those strengths while helping to overcome those weaknesses."

Manz said one of the more fundamental changes Central Plains clients are experiencing since the program was instituted earlier this year is that they are finally being heard.

"They can finally ask why and receive an answer," she explained. "And one of the first questions asked was, ‘Why do we have to get our vitals (height, weight, temperature, blood pressure and pulse) taken on each office visit?' "

The answer is so that any physical changes can be quickly identified and addressed.

To help the center staff embrace the changes brought on by the new program, they are undergoing WRAP training. That stands for "wellness and recovery action plan," which was developed by and for mental health center consumers. Staff and consumer surveys before beginning the program transition helped identify areas on which to work.

"We are already beginning to see positive things brought on by these changes, and a major part of it involves taking time to get to know the individual during the intake process - right from the beginning - and letting them know that they are important," Reid said. "We let them know that we are listening to them."(Plainview)