Melinda Messenger attended the 2015 Peer Supported Open Dialogue Conference in London.

Melinda Messenger

Peer Supported Open Dialogue is revolutionising the way patients are treated in the mental health services. Originating in Finland, Open Dialogue is being introduced into the NHS by Dr Russell Razzaque author of the radical book Breaking Down Is Waking Up.

Open Dialogue is an approach that uses the family and social network as a crucial aspect of the healing process. It sees an individual in distress as part of a whole. When a person is suffering from mental distress, Open Dialogue sees this as a result in the breakdown of relationships. It focusses on rebuilding these so that the person can get well again.

Melinda Messenger features in this video produced by Green Lane Films showcasing the Peer Supported Open Dialogue Conference in London 2015. Melinda is doing a Transpersonal Psychotherapy training and attended the conference in a professional capacity.

“It is exactly what it is needed and it will make a difference.” Melinda Messenger

Open Dialogue was developed in Finland after their mental health system collapsed under the strain. They used to have the worst statistics in Europe for Schizophrenia and they now they have the best. Now in Finland, thanks for Open Dialogue, over 70% of people treated for first episode psychosis return to work within two years. In the UK more than 70% of people treated for first episode psychosis do NOT return to work.

An independent clinical trial is currently researching Open Dialogue in the NHS in the UK. If the results of this trial are positive, we can expect radical changes within the mental health services. If they don’t collapse before then.

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