ORIGINAL PAPER Results of an Innovative University-based Recovery Education Program for Adults with Psychiatric Disabilities Erin C. Dunn Æ E. Sally Rogers Æ Dori S. Hutchinson Æ Asya Lyass Æ Kim L. MacDonald Wilson Æ Lori R. Wallace Æ Kathleen Furlong-Norman Published online: 14 June 2008 Ó Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2008 Abstract This study examined the effectiveness of an educational approach to psychiatric rehabilitation called the Recovery Center. Using a quasi-experimental design we recruited 97 intervention and 81 comparison partici- pants and examined the intervention’s impact on health, mental health, subjective, and role functioning outcomes. Results suggested that this intervention was effective in improving subjective outcomes, especially empowerment and recovery attitudes, both of which received primary emphasis in the intervention. The Recovery Center, which integrates a bio-psychosocial framework with psycho- educational interventions shows promise as a complement to traditional mental health services in developing readi- ness for rehabilitation and promoting recovery among individuals with severe psychiatric disabilities. Keywords Educational intervention Á Recovery Á Mental health services Á Bio-psychosocial Á Serious mental illness Á Psychoeducation Introduction The rehabilitation of individuals with psychiatric disabili- ties has been the subject of research and program development for decades (Anthony et al. 2002) and the recent federal mandate to transform mental health services has resulted in a paradigm shift toward ‘‘recovery-ori- ented’’ services [Davidson et al. 2006; New Freedom Commission on Mental Health 2003; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 2005]. As part of that transformation, evidence-based interven- tions and best practices that promote overall health, role recovery and community integration are being developed and are taking hold (Bond et al. 2004; Hutchinson et al. 2006b; Mead and Copeland 2000; Mueser et al. 2003; Noordsy et al. 2002; Resnick et al. 2004). A recovery orientation requires that programs and practices identify and build upon ‘‘each individual’s assets, strengths, and areas of health and competence to support the person in managing his or her condition while regaining a meaningful, constructive sense of membership in the broader community’’ (Davidson et al. 2006, p. 24). The growing consensus that the goal of services must be the recovery and reintegration of people with psychiatric dis- abilities (Brown and Tucker 2005) has required programs and practitioners to develop collaborative, multidisciplin- ary services to increase and restore the functional, mental, social, spiritual, and physical health of individuals with serious mental illnesses (Hutchinson et al. 2006b). How- ever, despite these calls, there remains a dearth of Erin C. Dunn and Lori R. Wallace at the time of data collection were at the Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, Boston University. E. C. Dunn Education Development Center Inc., Center for College Health and Safety, 55 Chapel Street, Newton, MA 02458-1060, USA E. Sally Rogers (&) Á D. S. Hutchinson Á A. Lyass Á K. Furlong-Norman Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, Boston University, 940 Commonwealth Ave, West Boston, MA 02215, USA e-mail: erogers@bu.edu K. L. MacDonald Wilson University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA L. R. Wallace School of Public Health, Boston University, West Boston, MA 02215, USA 123 Adm Policy Ment Health (2008) 35:357–369 DOI 10.1007/s10488-008-0176-9