Family and Caregiver Training and Support Program (FACTS)

The Family and Caregiver Training and Support (FACTS) Program recognizes that engaging families and caregivers is an essential acknowledgement that mental health conditions, like other medical conditions, are not experienced by individuals alone. When we include a person’s support network, we’re allowing for a more holistic approach to treatment and recovery. We know from decades of research that effective family and caregiver involvement in a patient’s treatment supports patient recovery, improves social connections and decreases mental health crises. It also improves family and caregiver well-being and can lead to lower healthcare utilization and costs. Yet despite a desire to help, many families and caregivers don’t have access to education, skills training or resources to step into this critical, unpaid role.

Leadership:

Mollie Forrester, MSW, LICSW

FACTS Website

Main Challenge

The mental health system is not designed to engage families and caregivers in the care of their loved ones. The experience of having a mental health condition can be scary and isolating for patients and their families. Reliable information can be hard to find and misconceptions about mental health can reinforce stigma and further isolation. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

We envision an inclusive, collaborative program – a Family and Caregiver Training and Support (FACTS) program located in the new Center for Behavioral Health and Learning – where patients, families, caregivers and clinicians can learn from each other on how to best support a patient as well as each other.

Our Approach

The FACTS program leverages the expertise of UW Medicine’s clinicians and researchers and the life experiences of patients, families and caregivers into a real-world, multidirectional training and skill building program for the entire care team. This includes basic psychoeducation and skill building courses, family peer support groups, a digital community that provides evidence informed and reliable information and resources, and ultimately a collaborative learning environment for patients, families and caregivers as well as the healthcare professionals who care for them.

Contact

Mollie Forrester
Director, Patient and Family Experience
mgforr@uw.edu
206-348-2649

Department Faculty

Mollie Forrester, MSW, LICSW

Anna Ratzliff, MD, PhD