Knowing the People Planning
Anyone requiring long-term assistance from mental health services needs to have both their current and future needs met. Te Pou uses a practical approach to help services achieve these objectives, known as Knowing the People Planning (KPP).
Knowing the People Planning (KPP) is an easy to use self-assessment method for mental health services to check they are providing what people say they want.
Clients and their families/whanau identify ten key service features that best meet the basic needs for recovery and independence. Four deliverables each client can expect are:
- a recovery plan
- a relapse prevention plan
- health needs (appropriate medication and primary care access)
- social needs (a home and a job or meaningful occupation).
The other six key service features are the style of service which will make the deliverables effective.
This innovative way of planning was developed by David King and Barry Welsh. The Knowing the People Planning toolkit includes an easy to use survey to evaluate the experience of people using services. This is used to assess how well local mental health systems are working and to identify where improvement is needed.
Knowing the People Planning provides hard evidence, which can be used to influence planning and funding decisions that directly benefit people using services with the greatest needs. It provides accurate, up-to-date information to identify service gaps, develop local level service planning and provide evidence of improvements for service users. The ultimate aim is to support people with enduring mental health issues in the best possible way.
The Knowing the People Planning toolkit was enhanced in 2011 to make it even easier for services and teams to use. The new toolkit makes it easier to enter data about people new to the service, provides every clinician with an immediate overview of their clinical work, and uses Microsoft Excel features to provide service managers and team leaders with material for reports and reviews.
Te Pou will continue to work with district health boards (DHBs) already using Knowing the People Planning, and offering an orientation session to those who don’t currently use it. These sessions are aimed at increasing understanding of what the Knowing the People Planning toolkit has to offer, so informed decisions can be made. They can either use it as a stand-alone toolkit or incorporate elements into their existing patient management systems.
At the end of the day, knowing the people we serve will ensure the best planning for people’s needs and better health outcomes.
Did you know?
Around 100,000 New Zealanders are treated by specialist mental health services every year. Most are discharged within two years. About 15,000 of these people, or 15 per cent, have contact with services for two or more years. As well as experiencing reoccurring mental illness, long-term users of services may also have issues with hardship, social isolation and difficulty in finding employment and housing.
Te Pou helps services meet the needs of long-term service users by providing the latest information tools, training and support.
