Dialogue among stakeholders of severe mental illness

The roles of consumers, family members, and service providers within the me ntal health service system hare changed dramatically in the, past two decad es. This study examines stakeholder attitudes about the usefulness of dialo gue programs. Approximately 240 consumers, family members, and service prov iders completed a survey about dialogue programs; participants also reporte d current level of distress due to their respective experiences with mental illness. Findings suggest there is a high level of interest in dialogue pr ograms across all stakeholder groups and that willingness to participate in a dialogue may be associated with distress about mental illness. Stakehold ers who reported interest in dialogue participation were also asked about d esirable dialogue program logistics. They prefered dialogues be held monthl y and be facilitated by either a service provider or some other neutral par ty Implications of these findings for developing,tg dialogue programs are d iscussed.