What is family psychoeducation?
Family Psychoeducation is an essential part of the PIER Model. It is an evidence-based model of practice in which clients, clinicians/facilitators and family members work together in a structured format on life issues that affect symptoms. This model allows families to work along with mental health care professionals while connecting with other families. Evidence indicates that family engagement in the treatment of mental illness helps lead to success by contributing to the prevention of relapse and re-hospitalizations. This approach has been shown repeatedly to achieve major advances in social and role functioning, allowing over 80% of young people who participate to continue in school or work.
How does Multifamily Group differ from family therapy?
The Multifamily Group (MFG) model involves working with several families together in a group setting rather than in a single family-to-therapist setting using a highly structured, problem solving format.
“Not only did I make friends, but it was comforting to see other families going through the same thing.”MFG therapy and PIER Model clientThe unique benefits of MFG to the participants include gaining insight from listening to and interacting with other families with similar challenges, and deriving support and motivation from participating in a network of family members who are similarly affected by mental illness. The MFG approach promotes several families working together to develop new options for overcoming a given youth’s specific barriers to recovery.