Patrick Wood on the need
to keep it real in co-production
Simple but revolutionary
Co-production is a simple but revolutionary idea.
It’s about developing more
equal partnerships between people who use services, carers and professionals
with the aim of providing support and services that meet the needs and respond
to the wishes of people who access health and social care provision.
Principled
I fully support SCIE’s approach to
co-production, which is grounded in the principles of equality (everyone has
assets), diversity, accessibility and reciprocity (or getting something back
for putting something in).
More
than a buzzword
There’s a lot of talk about co-production in statutory and
voluntary sector organisations at the moment, which indicates that the concept
is moving towards the mainstream. Whilst this trend can be broadly welcomed, we
need to be aware of the associated dangers. Sadly, I’m aware of initiatives
supported by large service providers that use co-production as a buzzword in
the aggressive pursuit of funding, which ultimately works to the disadvantage
of the communities they purport to serve.
We need to remain vigilant to ensure that co-production
doesn’t end up as an empty word or co-opted approach to maintaining the status
quo that has everything of real value stripped from it. As my old friend and
fellow long-term survivor activist Terry Simpson says, mainstreaming has
diluted the reach and potential of advocacy and peer support, and you can also
see a similar limiting force at work in the history of the mental health recovery
movement and the provision of talking treatments in this country.
From strategy
to delivery
Sue Sibbald, the Sheffield based campaigner, trainer and
activist for people with ‘Borderline Personality Disorder’ produced a couple of
Tweets during last year’s National Co-production Week that get right to the
heart of the matter:
“Co-production is not asking me to come along and tell my
story nor is it asking me what you think of your great idea... It's about me
being there from strategy to delivery and you need to be aware of the power
imbalance...”
Patrick Wood: Mental health training, advocacy, influence and participation, peer support and co-production. Co-ordinator of SUST (Sheffield User Survivor Trainers).
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