"I'm Glad you Asked": Homeless Clients with Severe Mental Illness Evaluate Their Residential Care

Authors

Katherine Tyson McCrea, Loyola University, Chicago
Lesa Spravka, Loyola University, Chicago

Keywords

Homeless persons, consumer evaluation, residential care for severely mentally ill clients

Abstract

Homeless clients with severe mental illness can offer considerable insight about their residential care, but there are significant methodological challenges in eliciting their service evaluations: maximizing participation, facilitating self-expression, and preserving clients' natural meanings. This study addresses those challenges and presents qualitative data residential care staff obtained from 210 clients. While clients prioritized meeting their subsistence needs, they emphasized attaining inner well-being and mutually respectful relationships, and that group services needed to reduce confrontational interactions in order to be helpful. For after-care services, clients sought sustained relationships with staff grounded in client initiative, combining respect for their autonomy with psychosocial support.

Recommended Citation

McCrea, Katherine Tyson and Spravka, Lesa (2008) ""I'm Glad you Asked": Homeless Clients with Severe Mental Illness Evaluate Their Residential Care," The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare: Vol. 35: Iss. 4, Article 8.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15453/0191-5096.3389
Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw/vol35/iss4/8