In Greece, Mental Health Mobile Units aim to reduce involuntary hospital admissions by working to keep individuals, particularly those in remote and rural areas, connected to their family and communities (Submission 27). According to Mental Health Europe (Mental Health Europe, 2019, p.7):
From the foundation of the first Unit in 1981 to the inclusion of Mobile Units in Greek law, more than 25 units have been founded and are still operational all over Greece. Mobile Units are now used as a basis for the provision of mental health services and the protection of the rights of mental health users, particularly in small and remote prefectures.
Reportedly, the local community, other health services as well as key individuals (local authorities, police department, and prosecutors) do not merely assist, but actively participate in the work of the Mobile Units, securing the person’s right to remain an active member of the community. By allowing persons to stay in their communities and offering services as close to the user’s home as possible, the Mobile Units ensure stability and continuity of care. Factors for success are prevention, information of local inhabitants, timely interventions, therapeutic treatment and maintaining contact with both the family of the user as well as the community. The Mobile Units treat individuals as a bio-psycho-social whole, meaning that they deal with social or work-related issues whilst taking the necessary steps for users to access appropriate treatment if they choose. Comparisons of data with prefectures where no Mobile Units are in place show that the percentage of involuntary hospitalisations is much lower (Submission 27).
According to one 10-year review of the practice:
The MMHU I-T and other similar units in Greece are a successful paradigm of a low-cost service which promotes mental health in rural, remote, and deprived areas. This model of care may be informative for clinical practice and health policy given the ongoing recession and health budget cuts. It suggests that rural mental healthcare may be effectively delivered by integrating generic community mental health mobile teams into the primary care system (Peritogiannis et al., 2017, p.556).
Another study indicated that hospitalisations were reduced significantly among those who used the service: ‘within the first 2 years of operation of the [mobile unit] hospitalizations of treatment engaged patients were reduced significantly by 30.4%’ (Peritogiannis et al., 2011).