On a shoestring: a consumer-based source of personpower for mental health education

This paper outlines a program for promoting mental health in the population by "giving away our skills" as mental health professionals. This kind of program can be started on a shoestring by a community mental health center, family service agency, or adult education program. It consists of teaching parent-child communication courses, with selected parents then becoming instructors to build a network of nonprofessional personpower. The paper explores strategies of setting up programs. It explores the shifting role of the professional toward a colleague relationship with nonprofessionals. Finally, it presents research on the program's effectiveness with parents and the impact on the lives and self-images of the nonprofessional instructors themselves.