An NHS peer worker is helping to transform mental health care by turning her lived experience of schizophrenia into empathy, advocacy and hope for others.
Rosealine Mitchell is one of more than 400 people at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) who draw on their personal experiences to support others through their treatment journeys on the Trust’s mental health wards.
Rosealine works at Edward House in Chelmsford, complimenting the therapeutic care provided by clinical teams to support patients at their most vulnerable, something she understands well.
“When I first saw the role of peer worker advertised, I thought, I must apply for this,” Rosealine explains.
“Unlike my previous roles, peer work was offering me employment where I didn’t have to hide my history of mental illness.
“Not only that, but I would get the opportunity to speak with others who had also been affected by mental ill health, because up until that point, my world was quite a lonely one.”
Having been diagnosed with schizophrenia, Rosealine feels a strong sense of shared understanding with many patients.
She said: “My experiences are the same as a lot of people who experience schizophrenia and I use my experience of mental ill health to guide the support I give.”
A key part of Rosealine’s role is accompanying patients to discussions with their care teams about their care, treatment and progress.
“If a patient requests for me to go to their ward review, then I attend with them,“ she said.
“They’re facing a large clinical team which can be daunting, and sometimes they want help with what they’re asking for, or they just want me there as a second person.
“I see my role as clarifying what the patient wants and needs, and also making clear what the clinical team is suggesting for the patient.”
Rosealine is passionate about creating opportunities for patients to connect, learn and enjoy themselves.
“Patients can feel demoralised being on the ward,” she says. “They hear about the outside world from family members, friends and staff. Sometimes they’re not allowed to leave the ward so I try to bring the outside in.”
Rosealine supports activities suggested by occupational therapists and ward managers, and has also introduced her own initiatives and clubs.
She said: “I started a recorder club where patients can learn to play and read music and a book club at which we discuss poems or short pieces of writing. It’s a general discussion, but it can bring things up for people that may influence their recovery in a good way.
“We do bracelet making, ‘maths for fun’, and I organise trips to the theatre – we went yesterday to hear some lunchtime music and we’re going again next month.
“I can play games with patients and talk to them, instead of that always having to be done by a member of the nursing team.”
One of the aspects of the role Rosealine enjoys most is the flexibility.
She said: “A peer worker’s role can be flexible based on what the patients need and want day to day, and that suits my character. We all bring something different to the role based on our talents, skills and abilities.”
Through honesty, empathy and shared understanding, Rosealine’s work reflects the growing importance of lived experience within inpatient mental health services – ensuring patients feel heard, understood and connected while they continue their treatment journey.