@article{ref1,
title="Valued attributes of professional support for people who repeatedly self-harm: a systematic review and meta-synthesis of first-hand accounts",
journal="International journal of mental health nursing",
year="2022",
author="Sass, Cara and Brennan, Cathy and Farley, Kate and Crosby, Helen and Rodriguez Lopez, Rocio and Romeu, Daniel and Mitchell, Elizabeth and House, Allan and Guthrie, Else",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="ePub-ePub",
abstract="Therapeutic interventions are an important adjunct to self-help strategies for people who self-harm. There is little guidance for those offering therapy on the effective components of interventions for people who self-harm. This was a systematic review aiming to identify the factors that contribute to positive experiences of therapy as described by people who have reduced or stopped self-harm. The review followed PRISMA guidelines to locate and synthesize peer-reviewed qualitative studies describing experiences of therapy among people who had reduced or stopped self-harm. Study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment were peer reviewed and conducted for at least two researchers independently. Relevant first-hand quotations were extracted from eligible studies and synthesized using a thematic analysis in collaboration with experts with personal and professional experience of self-harm. Twenty-three studies met eligibility criteria. Themes identified in the reported accounts were arranged under two meta-themes. 'Positive aspects of seeing a professional' identified aspects of professional care that were common to all encounters: the value of sharing, space to talk and reflect, and the boundaries inherent in contact with a professional. 'Positive attributes of individual professionals' depended upon individual characteristics: the ability to build reciprocal trust by being non-judgemental, showing genuine empathic concern, and being confident to talk about and respond directly to self-harm. Our review indicates that therapeutic alliance is perceived as key to effective professional help for self-harm, irrespective of underlying principles of therapy. All forms of therapy should be timely and reliable and centred around the needs of the individual and their experience of self-harm.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1445-8330",
doi="10.1111/inm.12969",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/inm.12969"
}