Clubhouse model for psychosocial rehabilitation

The Clubhouse Model for Psychosocial Rehabilitation is an outpatient program for people with mental illness . This is not a clinical program, so the staff are neither therapists nor psychologists. Instead of “ patients ” or “ clients ” one speaks here of “ members ”.

history

In 1948, former psychiatric patients founded a group in New York called “We Are Not Alone” (WANA). Their goal was to help each other and to reintegrate into society. Important aspects were and still are today: Housing, work, financial security and social contacts. Private sponsors bought a house in the early 1950s and from then on the organization called itself - after the fountain in the courtyard - "Fountain House". The Fountain House program became the model for the clubhouse model for psychosocial rehabilitation , which so far over 400 other institutions in 28 countries have joined.

Each clubhouse recognized by Clubhouse International (formerly: International Center for Clubhouse Development [ICCD]) guarantees its members four basic rights that are at the heart of the clubhouse model:

a place in the clubhouse,
sustainable relationships,
meaningful activities,
to be able to come back after any absence,

The members and staff of a clubhouse work side by side to complete all clubhouse tasks in partnership. People with mental illness, regardless of the type or severity of their mental health problems, can contribute to the community and are not treated as patients.

The four pillars of the clubhouse model

membership

Every mentally ill person can become a member. Membership is voluntary, free and unlimited in time. It enables access to all offers in the clubhouse.

Cooperation

Any work by members in the clubhouse is voluntary. The clubhouse works with the strengths, talents and skills of its members. Employees and members do all the work together to run the house as partners. Regardless of their diagnosis or their ability to perform, all members have the opportunity to work in all areas of the clubhouse.

Co-determination

Members and employees work together to develop the clubhouse. Members exercise their right to participate in the weekly clubhouse meetings. There, the pending topics are discussed together and decisions are usually made through consensus- finding.

Shared responsibility

Members and employees share responsibility for the clubhouse.

Internal structures

Clubhouse workgroups

Clubhouses are organizationally divided into different working groups. Typical work areas are office, kitchen, administration, field service (members who cannot visit the clubhouse are contacted and supported), education, advice and the organization of leisure activities. Each member chooses a working group based on their interests and skills. There is enough work in each group to provide a full and motivating work-oriented day. Any work by members in the clubhouse is voluntary and unpaid.

Work program

Clubhouses offer a phased work program that allows members to return to paid work. The first stage of the program is temporary part-time jobs (Transitional Employment Placement - TEP) at local companies that support the clubhouse. The selection of members and their training at the workplace are the responsibility of the clubhouse. The clubhouse guarantees the employer the agreed work performance; if the member is absent, an employee or another member steps in. These jobs are usually limited to six to nine months for the member and are administered by the clubhouse. The members receive the normal wage, which is not below the minimum wage . These jobs are simple activities so that many members have the opportunity to try them out.

The second tier is supported workplaces, where the clubhouse community helps a member find their own job. The clubhouse maintains contact with the working member and the employer. Members and employees jointly determine the frequency, type and location of the desired support.

The third step is an independent workplace in which the member is supported by the clubhouse community, but this no longer appears to the employer.

Other aspects of the clubhouse model

In addition to clubhouse and local work opportunities, clubhouses offer a wide range of support, for example in the areas of financial planning, evening and weekend planning, continuing education, healthy lifestyle and adequate medical, psychotherapeutic and pharmacological treatment and addiction counseling in their area. As usual in the clubhouse, every form of support is provided by the members and staff of the clubhouse.

Clubhouse International, Clubhouse Policies and Certification

The worldwide spread of these clubhouse programs for the mentally ill required the establishment of an umbrella organization and a definition of what is meant by “clubhouse”. In March 1994, the International Center for Clubhouse Development (ICCD [since 2012: Clubhouse International]) was founded to represent and support the rapidly growing clubhouse community. The International Clubhouse Guidelines were developed through the ICCD and approved by the worldwide clubhouse community. The underlying principles form the core of a “constitution” for the members and the ethical code for the employees. Every two years, these guidelines are reviewed by the global clubhouse community and changed as necessary. This process is coordinated by the Clubhouse International Policy Committee, made up of members and staff from certified clubhouses around the world.

The guidelines are the basis of quality assurance in Clubhouse International's certification process . Clubhouses that want to be certified apply for a certification visit to Clubhouse International. After submitting a self-study and a three-day visit, a detailed report on the quality of the work is drawn up and a final evaluation is given.

Web links

Individual evidence

^ "La philosophie du Clubhouse" in Zaballos, Nausica. Vie et Mort d'un Hôpital Psychiatrique: Le Camarillo Hospital (1936-1996), L'Harmattan, 2014, pp. 109-114.
↑ List of all clubhouses worldwide ( Memento from October 13, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
↑ PDF file of all club houses worldwide under Click here
↑ Goertzel V., Beard J., Pilnick S., "Fountain House Foundation: Case Study of an Expatient's Club" Journal of Social Issues, vol. 16, issue 2, pp.54-61, spring 1960.