Independent Facilitation or Mediation?

In behavioral health, both independent facilitation and mediation offer ways to handle conflicts and achieve positive outcomes, each suited to different needs in therapy and treatment settings.

INDEPENDENT FACILITATION

Independent Facilitation helps manage group dynamics, solve conflicts, and improve how people work together during therapy sessions or treatment plans. It involves a facilitator guiding parties through structured processes to meet specific therapy goals. Any recipient can choose to have their plan facilitated each year, this helps to create a person centered plan.

When to choose independent facilitation:

  • Group therapy dynamics: When therapy groups need help to talk better, solve problems, or work together on treatment.

  • Planning treatment: When teams of different specialists need guidance on making decisions about patient care and treatment.

  • Making therapy more effective: When it’s important to make group discussions, ideas, and care plans run more smoothly in mental health and behavioral health settings.

MEDIATION

Mediation is useful when individuals or groups in therapy face disagreements that affect their progress or relationships. A mediator, who understands mental health issues, helps them talk through problems and find solutions together. The individual parties create the agenda and run the meeting, the mediator only mediates/resolves conflicts if they arise.

When to choose mediation:

  • Therapy conflicts: When disagreements or misunderstandings between patients, family members, or caregivers affect therapy.

  • Keeping therapy relationships strong: When it’s important to maintain trust and cooperation among people in therapy to reach their goals.

  • Personalized solutions: When people need agreements that fit their unique mental health needs and paths to recovery.

Southeastern Dispute Resolution Services is LifeWays contracted provider for mediation and independent facilitation services.

Contact Southeastern Dispute Resolution Services at:

mediation@sedrs.org
(517) 990-0279
www.sedrs.org