Developing the philosophy of recovery in South African mental health services

The recovery movement has emerged as an important and powerful force in the design and implementation of mental health care in many countries around the world. This involves new and more positive understandings of the concept of recovery, both as an individual outcome and as a goal of services. The basis for these understandings is examined, with particular emphasis on long-term outcomes in schizophrenia, and a brief history of the origins of the recovery movement is given. An argument is made for the implementation of a recovery framework within South African mental health services.