Experiences of Social Inclusion and Employment of Mental Health Service Users in a European Union Project

Aims: The aim of this study is to describe how the mental health service users experienced social inclusion and employment in the European Union EMILIA project. Methods: The study design is an intervention group follow-up study, with data collection at three points: baseline (T0), at 10-month follow-up (T1), and at 20-month follow-up (T2). The data for this study were collected with thematically interviews from mental health service users and were thematic analyzed with content analysis. The number of participants was 23, including two to four service users per each demonstration site. Results: Most users experienced improvement in their social life. Employment and participation in meaningful activities continued to improve to the end of the EMILIA project, although at a slower pace. In addition, users were motivated for work and actively searched for employment. Having a mental illness, stigma, and discrimination were reported to be obstacles to social inclusion. The difficulties identified in social relationships continued to exist. Conclusions: Training intervention had a positine impact on mental health service users' social inclusion and employment. However, stigma, discrimination, and mental illness are still barriers to users' integration.