Is group reading of benefit to people with mental health problems?

Key points

• The Reader Organisation works in healthcare to share great literature with patients and staff
• One trust has piloted readings of stories and poems to patients with acute mental health problems
• The 90-minute “read aloud” sessions encourage patients to interrupt and share life experiences
• Participants in the sessions engaged with the content of the text and with each other
• The sessions were a good example of collaborative working between healthcare and the third sector

Let’s discuss

• Think about what you get from reading. Outline why you read and what you gain from the process.
• What are the benefits of group reading for people with mental health problems?
• If you were going to set up a group reading scheme how would you advertise it to patients?
• How would you measure its effectiveness?
• Could the principles of group reading but used in other clinical specialties? Give examples.

You can email questions to Eileen.shepherd@emap.com or tweet @eileenshepherd

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