Matrix Model: a tool for the construction of good practice in community mental health

Abstract

The contemporary changes produced by the new mental health policies place as main challenge the construction of substitutive services to hospital, developed in the context of care in the community. This challenge requires a complex set of conditions involving, among other factors, the development of a new ethical and technical culture able to create innovative responses to care of people with mental disorders. It is in this scenario that we must discuss the relevance and importance of the project developed by Thornicroft and Tansella, "The Matrix Model", presented in this paper. There, the authors bring fundamental contributions to underpin the new culture of services and professional training sought by the process of psychiatric reform. This model can be used in planning, evaluation and modeling of services; in addition, it can bring useful tools to the research in mental health services.