Self-directed care: participants' service utilization and outcomes.

OBJECTIVE Self-directed care (SDC) is a mental health service delivery model in which participants budget the state dollars allotted for their care to purchase the goods and services they deem most appropriate for achieving their recovery goals. This study examines the demographic characteristics, service utilization patterns, and outcomes of individuals enrolled in the Florida Self-Directed Care (FloridaSDC) program, which is the oldest and most established SDC program in the United States for individuals diagnosed with a severe and persistent mental illness. METHOD This is a naturalistic descriptive study in which demographic, service utilization, and outcome data (i.e., Functional Assessment Rating Scale (FARS) scores, days in the community, days worked, monthly income, discharge status) were collected from the clinical and fiscal records of 136 FloridaSDC participants. RESULTS Key findings suggest that FloridaSDC participants had very little income and largely utilized their budgets to subsidize their living expenses. Though most participants did not work or earn income and very few left the program due to employment, participants' FARS scores improved modestly and nearly all participants remained in the community throughout the study period. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE Participants' service purchases were rational given the poverty in which they live, and their outcomes did not suffer when they controlled decisions regarding their service needs. These findings highlight the utility and value of the personalized budgeting and individualized planning components of SDC. Findings also point to the need for practitioners to implement innovative strategies to enhance participants' employment readiness and supported employment opportunities. (PsycINFO Database Record