'No service is an island': experiences of collaboration with crisis resolution teams in Norway

Crisis resolution teams (CRTs) are a community-based service targeting adults experiencing acute mental health crises. The rationale for the development of CRTs is both value and efficacy based, suggesting that CRTs should contribute to the humanizing of mental health services and replace some acute hospital-based services with services in the community. Despite the collaborative nature of CRT work, how professionals from health and social services experience collaboration with CRTs is scantly explored. In the current study, semi-structured focus group interviews with eight different groups of 44 clinicians collaborating with CRTs in Norway were conducted. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis and categorized into four themes: (1) 'The accessible experts', (2) 'A broad and deep expertise', (3) 'Doing it together' and (4) 'Toward a new culture?'. The themes elaborate on issues related to the content and organization of CRT services, emphasizing the need for CRTs to be able to contribute their professional expertise in accessible, flexible and collaborative ways. A diversity in the knowledge base and in how services are organized may pose a challenge in interprofessional mental health crisis collaboration and mutual expectations. The study suggests that a shift toward a value-based and coherent mental health and social system could be a purposeful direction.