The Outcomes Star

Recently at work I have been starting to plan a Recovery Star group to be delivered across the three wards in the Medium Secure Unit where I work. The group aim is to proactively help the residents take a hold on their recovery with the support of the MDT.

I thought that I could use this blog post to briefly introduce the model to those who are not familiar with the Outcomes Star (the Recovery Star is the Mental Health version) a bit about what it is and where it can be used.

The Outcomes Star was developed and is supported by Triangle Consulting Social Enterprise Ltd. Triangle was founded in 2003 as an outcomes consultancy to enable value driven organisations to "count what really counts" in their work. The enterprise combines research and evaluation skills with an understanding of human behaviour in order to develop systems to support change.

The Outcomes Star both measures and supports progress for service users towards self-reliance or other goals. The Stars are designed to be completed collaboratively as an integral part of rehabilitation.

There are currently fourteen Outcomes stars designed for a range of different services and client groups. The fourteen different stars are:

• Alcohol Star
• Community Star, 
• Drug and Alcohol Star
•  Empowerment Star (domestic violence services)
•  Family Star
•  Homlessness Star
•  Life Star for LD’s
• Mental Health Recovery Star
• Music Therapy Star
• Older Persons Star
• Teen Star
• Spectrum Star for Autism and Aspergers
• Well-being Star
• Work Star

I will be using the Recovery Star in my place of work. The Recovery Star is made up of ten core dimensions which are shown in the diagram below:

Individuals are supported via their MDT care team to use a ladder system to score how their recovery process is progressing. The 'ladder' of places for each branch on the star is broken down into the following areas:

A detailed explanation of the Stars and the scoring and working of the ladder of change can be found at the Outcomes Star website: http://www.outcomesstar.org.uk and I would highly recommend you read into the Outcomes Star if it is of interest to you.

There are many benefits of using the Star, some of which being; It helps improve rehabilitation programmes and provides evidence for outcomes, it is engaging, visual and collaborative, helps both service users and professionals to gain a greater insight into the individuals areas of strengths and needs and supports MDT working.

There are also some really strong and positives benefits reported from Service users on the website given above. One which caught my attention was as follows:

The Star made a massive difference to me because it showed me that there were things I could do to become the person I wanted to be - a more rounded person with a more rounded star.It showed me that there were goals I could achieve. When you're ill, the thought that you can be well seems very daunting but the Star breaks it down into baby steps and you start to feel, "Yes, I can do this". That really built my confidence and gave me hope.

 I am looking forward to continuing my group planning and then implementing the Recovery Star group in my place of work and will use this blog as a place to update you about the positive impact which the group will hopefully have in the future.

Happy OTuesday,
Kate :)