The impact of caregivers on the effectiveness of an early community mental health detection and intervention programme in Hong Kong

Aim: The prevalence rate of mental illness in Chinese communities is high, but Chinese clients tend to underutilize mental health services. Caregivers may play an important role in mental health early detection and intervention, but few studies have investigated their roles in community mental health services. This study compared the effectiveness of an early detection and intervention programme, the Community Mental Health Intervention Project, for two groups in the context of Hong Kong – clients with and without caregivers. Method: A comparison group pre–post-test design was adopted. A total of 170 service users joined this study, including 100 with caregivers and 70 without caregivers. Results: Both groups showed a significant decrease in psychiatric symptoms and increase in community living skills; the group without caregivers indicated a greater reduction in psychiatric symptoms. Different social work intervention components had different predictive effects on these changes. Conclusion: The Community Mental Health Intervention Project is an effective early detection and intervention programme in working with Hong Kong Chinese people who are suspected of having mental health problems, especially for those without caregivers.