Supported housing for persons with serious mental illness and personal recovery: What do families think?

Background And Aims: Previous research on supported housing for people with serious mental illness focuses primarily on tenant/client experiences. The aim of this article is to present families' perspectives on the role of supported housing in recovery, utilizing the CHIME framework of personal recovery.

Method: Qualitative interviews were conducted with 14 families of individuals with serious mental illness living in supported housing. Participants were across five supported housing sites in four Canadian provinces.

Results: Families credited supported housing with helping tenants redefine a positive sense of identity, re-establish social relationships and regain control over their lives. Families were less confident about supported housing facilitating future employment or 'full' recovery, focusing on stability rather than continual improvement.

Conclusion: This is one of the first studies to report family perspectives on the role of supported housing in their loved one's recovery processes - both strengths and weaknesses.