Person-centered planning in mental health: a transatlantic collaboration to tackle implementation barriers

Collaborative, person-centered approaches to care planning are increasingly recognized as instrumental in supporting attainment of personal recovery outcomes. Yet, while much is known about factors which support person-centered planning, successful implementation often remains an elusive goal. This paper reviews international efforts to promote Person-Centered Care Planning (PCCP) in the context of a randomized clinical trial in the United States and in the “Meaningful and Measurable” initiative, a collaborative action research project involving diverse provider organizations in Scotland. The authors review the history of international efforts to implement PCCP and offer preliminary evidence regarding its positive impact on both process outcomes (i.e., the nature of the primary therapeutic relationship and the service-user’s experience) and personal recovery outcomes (e.g., quality of life, community belonging, and valued roles). PCCP will be defined through description of key principles and practices as they relate to both relational aspects (i.e., shifts in stakeholder roles and conversations) and documentation/recording aspects (i.e., how person-centered relationships are captured in written or electronic records). Similarities and differences across the US and Scottish experience of person-centered care planning will be highlighted and a series of recommendations offered to further implementation of this essential recovery-oriented practice.