In several Western countries the commitment of the community and what can be expected from the welfare state is being reconsidered. In the Netherlands this trend finds its reflection in the transition from the welfare state to the so-called participatory society. Various initiatives to make citizens responsible for their own health and wellbeing and that of their neighbourhood are encouraged by the state. Without being exhaustive, this involves the introduction of the Social Support Act (in Dutch known as ‘Wet maatschappelijke ondersteuning’, Wmo) and Welfare New Style (‘Welzijn Nieuwe Stijl’, WNS), the interest in community capability, and the revaluation of social network strategies such as ‘wraparound care’, ‘protective coats, ‘community support’, ‘signs of safety’, and ‘safety network’. The aim of this thesis is to seek an answer to the question whether the client group of Public Mental Health Care (PMHC) can benefit from the protective effects of social networks that are activated by Family Group Conferencing (FGC).
There is plenty of experience with FGC in youth care, both in the Netherlands as well as in other countries. To date, however, there has been little research done on the process and outcomes of FGC for adult clients in general and PMHC clients in particular. Between 2011 and 2013, 41 family group conferences in the PMHC networks of the province of Groningen were examined how they proceeded and what they yielded. PMHC is a field wherein people are offered help who avoid the care they actually need, or who do not know where to ask for help. A large part of this group lives in degenerated and degraded conditions and/or is involved in liveability problems in neighbourhoods. These are people who apparently have a limited network; relationships are broken or faded. It is therefore questionable whether the realisation of the goals as indicated in the Wmo – promoting social integration and participation, mobilising informal support and achieving social cohesion – is possible with the PMHC client group.

Dissertation free available at the researchportal: https://research.vu.nl/en/publications/family-group-conferencing-in-public-mental-health-care-a-responsi
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