Intensive Home Based Support Services (IHBSS)

Outreach support and group programs for mental health recovery and wellbeing.

Sections on this page

What is IHBSS?
Our approach
The Optimal Health Program
The IHBSS team
Eligibility and referrals
Locations using this program

What is IHBSS?

IHBSS provides outreach support and group programs for mental health recovery and wellbeing in South Australia.

Funded by SA Health and delivered by Neami National, the program provides psychosocial support for people who either have experienced acute episodes of mental illness requiring hospitalisation or who are at risk of being admitted to hospital.

Program participants are provided with up to three months of intensive support aimed at preventing admission or relapse, facilitating early discharge, and transitioning back into the community.

The type of support provided is dependent on individual needs and goals. Examples of things IHBSS can help with include:

Taking part in social and community activities and connecting with local services.
Improving relationships with family and friends.
Improving physical health and wellbeing.
Building confidence with everyday tasks such as budgeting, public transport and home care.
Pursuing education and employment opportunities.

Our approach

Support Workers act as mentors in the recovery journey and help to identify strengths, values and goals in life. People participate in the development of their own wellness plan which incorporates personal coping strategies.

Some of the tools we use include:

The Collaborative Recovery Model, a framework for identifying personal strengths, values and goals.
Coaching conversations to support and challenge participants to reflect, re-frame and respond to their own lives.
The Neami Health Prompt, which facilitates discussions about physical health, and a range of other health promotion resources.

The IHBSS team

The IHBSS team comprises outreach Support Workers from a diverse range of backgrounds, including Peer Support Workers with a lived experience of recovery.

IHBSS provides a flexible, person-centred and culturally informed service to diverse consumers including CALD, LGBTIQ, Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and young people.

Eligibility and referrals

IHBSS is for people who:

Are aged 16 and over.
Have a serious mental illness and functional disability.
Are at risk of relapsing without support.
Require short-term intensive support.
Have complex needs (including co-morbid disabilities and drug and alcohol issues).

Referrals for young people and Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people who are at risk of requiring acute care are encouraged.

Referrals to the program can be made via Mental Health Community Teams. Contact your nearest Neami service for more information.