The relationship of a self-reported assessment of need in mental illness to insight

Background: UK national mental health policy reform places an increased emphasis on mental health service user participation as an important variable in the assessment of need. A review of mental health need assessment methodologies shows that there are controversies in the definition and assessment of mental health need. This, in part, relates to `poor agreement' and the under-reporting of need by clients compared to key-workers. Aim: To examine the relationship of insight to self-reported needs in an assessment of need situation. Method: One hundred and sixty Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) service users and their respective key-workers participated in a survey design using the Bangor Assessment of Need Profile and The Insight Scale. Results: Data show that people with a mental illness having more insight rate more need and that key-workers continue to rate needs when a person with a mental illness has no insight. Conclusions: It is concluded that measures of insight can be used in order to explore and define the characteristics of people with a mental illness who are `better' able to report their needs compared to those who are `less' able. Declaration of interest: None