Strategic Plan for Documenting Mental Health in NY

A Strategic Plan for Documenting Mental Health in New York State

Actions to Improve Mental Health Documentation

Organizations engaged in the documentation of mental health may enhance their success by incorporating the following actions into their plans:

Make personal contact and create ongoing dialogue with individuals in all facets of the mental health field: mental health recipients, particularly those active in mental health organizations, policy makers, service providers, advocates, families of recipients
Include and work with members of particular population groups that may have special needs or experiences with mental health issues — groups such as children, elderly people, members of ethnic or cultural minorities, etc.
Provide training, technical assistance, and publications that will help organizations improve the management and preservation of their records.
Use oral histories to gather and preserve information currently missing from the documentary record.
Develop statistical approaches to the analysis of mental health data.
Use this plan as a guide in terms of both content and method, but adapt it to fit your locality and the particular needs, missions, resources, and priorities of the organizations involved in the documentation work.