Pathfinder's Personal Recovery Plans

Pathfinder Service - Personal Recovery Plans

Pathfinder West Sussex is an alliance of organisations working together to enable people with mental health support needs, and their carers, to improve their mental health and well-being. These organisations include but are not limited to Stone Pillow, Mind, Southdown, Richmond Fellowship, and of course Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust. Pathfinder gives you a single point of contact in your local area, with staff trained to provide one to one advice and support. There are nine Pathfinder areas across West Sussex, and can be viewed on the website: www.pathfinderwestsussex.org.uk.

This unique service is one of a kind, existing only in West Sussex. There is national interest in the service; Pathfinder was featured in the Deficits in Mental Health Care 2019 document as a positive practice example.  With 71% (April –July 2019) of service users referred to the SPFT Pathfinder clinical service being completely discharged from the care of SPFT, it is no wonder that Pathfinder has gained national attention.

Using their Heads On charitable funds, the Pathfinder clinical service printed 250 Personal Recovery Plan booklets for service users. These can be used to include the 5 Ways to Well-being, as well as other useful ways to plan service users’ roads to recovery, such as sections on interests and goals.

The booklets have had positive feedback from service users. One service user said the “Personal Recovery Plan was excellent and would be keen to do this [sic], include my partner and share it”. Another service user had this to say about Pathfinder: “The service has different things to offer that can help, particularly healthy lifestyle and preparing for returning to work.”