1. We want to feel that we’ve been listened to
At the core of mental health services is the quality of the relationship between the person using the service and the person working with them. The interaction between them is so important – it is the basis for so much. Do staff behave as if they care, do they behave as if what I think is important, or do they assume that the professionals always know best?
In order to ensure that service users experience empathy from staff, the organisation in which staff work must continually support and enable them to work in that way.