The Same But Different: Supporting adults with Asperger's in a mental health service

Asperger's Syndrome is commonly associated with mental health difficulties (Ghaziuddin 2005), however, community mental health teams often feel ill-equipped to meet the needs of these individuals. However, a national strategy... [ view full abstract ]

Asperger's Syndrome is commonly associated with mental health difficulties (Ghaziuddin 2005), however, community mental health teams often feel ill-equipped to meet the needs of these individuals. However, a national strategy for Autism now emphasises the need for all services to be better informed and to ensure they meet the needs of autistic adults who access their services. Therefore, this project aimed to enhance the mental wellbeing and self-management ability of individuals with Asperger's currently accessing mental health services by establishing a therapeutic group that offered an education component and peer support with recognition of the sensory, interpersonal and cognitive needs of participants.

The multi-disciplinary group comprised of 6 sessions each of which involved education about an aspect of autism as well as a group based activity. Data about the impact of group sessions was gathered using the Model of Human Occupation Screening Tool (Parkinson et al. 2006), the Therapy Outcome Measure (Enderby et al. 2006) and using self-reporting questionnaires. All participants demonstrated improved levels of activity, participation and wellbeing following attending group sessions, and they reported increased understanding of their diagnosis as well as gaining additional coping strategies. The opportunity to share their experiences was viewed positively by participants and the peer support the group offered was valued.

This pilot project has resulted in further groups being organised across the area and, by involving new members of staff in subsequent groups, the ability to meet the specific needs of adults with Asperger's in local teams is improving.

The group described was a practice development project and therefore an integral part of the work undertaken by members of the mental health team. Participants were offered the opportunity to participate in the group in the... [ view full abstract ]

The group described was a practice development project and therefore an integral part of the work undertaken by members of the mental health team. Participants were offered the opportunity to participate in the group in the same manner they would be offered a place in any other therapeutic group. Participation was therefore voluntary and attendance at the individual's discretion. The data gathered was part of the normal evaluation process undertaken when running groups and in line with local policies. The group members gave permission for anonymised data to be used in the presentation of this poster.