Whenever I start to talk about the research and development I’m interested in online to someone who is within or related to the mental health field I often find myself posed with this comment ‘have you seen our/they’re blog/website/online something?’ 

And the reality is, that majoratively I will have seen it. 

We produce the Quick Guide and Online Guide to mental health services in Leeds.  But services are no longer the only kinds of information you may want access too. 

So how do we incorporate an infrastructure that relates mental health and recovery almost as code within the whole of the information superhighway?  It’s really a question of mapping the internet and linking up networks. 

And when you do - what impact will that have on individual’s journeys of Recovery?  and what will it mean for the Global society as a whole in terms of understanding Recovery in practice? 

These are big questions and don’t have answers - yet.

Another question might be - why is an Information Service thinking about this?

The reality is that it is database and information servers that intiated the beginning of the internet as we know it now.  It’s what information services do - they map the existing information and the changing information and future of information.

Any information service needs to be looking at this.  It will become their bread and butter more so.  Especially since the dramatic downturn in economy - the business sector is quickly looking to online services and information mapping and promotion services to meet revenue costs.  The link above explains why. This is increasingly where people can be reached.

And the economy also poses a need to join forces.  Today Google announced the closing of many of it’s online services.  The reason being that these applications have been overtaken by other market leaders.  In a stronger economy these applications would have survived.  And the market leader will now gain those clients.  This will change the face of connection on the internet.

You could think about that this way.  If 2 out of 3 mental health services had their funding cut the remaining service would pick up that work.  This would be a growth and reshuffling time along with great difficulties. 

This is now happening on such a grand scale online. It is a period of re-structuring, re-ordering and great creativity.  And it is an opportunity for mental health and recovery to be rethought within that infrastructure.

hilker:

(via sraz)