Recovery concept in a Norwegian setting to be examined by the assertive community treatment model and mixed methods

Recovery is a crucial concept in the mental health field. The research of recovery is split into the categories of personal, social and clinical recovery. The purpose of this study was to explore the fragmented concept of recovery in light of assertive community treatment (ACT) in Norway. The study has a mixed methods design with a pragmatic approach. The Questionnaire about the Process of Recovery and open-ended questions posed to 70 participants from 12 ACT teams in Norway, gathered by the “Users interview users” method, are combined with interviews or focus groups with eight of these participants. Surprisingly those under a community treatment order (CTO) report the highest degree of personal recovery. The qualitative material shows that the service users interpreted the concept of recovery differently than researchers and professionals. The ACT service users highlighted three important elements: flexible treatment, medication and access to a car. They emphasized the necessity for basic needs to be met in order to experience a meaningful recovery process, and these basic needs may be of even greater importance to those under CTOs. Their experiences should imply a greater emphasis on securing basic needs such as secure housing, sounder finances and access to the normal benefits offered by society.