Community Support Programs Branch

Consumer and Consumer Supporter Technical Assistance Centers (TACs) Program Historical Background

Since its inception, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Center for Mental Health Services (SAMHSA/CMHS) has fostered self-help approaches in the planning, delivery, and evaluation of mental health services.

In 1992, to further the development of self-help in the recovery of persons with serious mental illnesses, Federal funding was used to finance the first national self-help technical assistance centers (TACs) directed by and for mental health consumers. Assistance to supporters (family members and friends) of consumers was added to the program in 1998 in recognition of the important role persons who support and care for consumers can play in helping them achieve independence and recovery.

The primary focus of TACs’ activities is on individuals with serious mental illnesses, with an emphasis on diverse populations. Outreach and assistance are available to a range of stakeholders, including state mental health systems serving adults, consumers, consumer supporters, service providers, and the general public.

The five national consumer and consumer supporter TACs assist in the transformation of the mental health system to promote recovery from mental illnesses. These programs encourage consumers of mental health services to:

Exercise self-determination and recovery,
Help people with severe mental illnesses decrease their dependence on expensive social services, and
Avoid psychiatric hospitalization.

The goals of the consumer/peer-run TACs program include:

Promoting skills development for consumers, with an emphasis on leadership, business, and management;
Strengthening consumer organizations and leadership in communities;
Improving collaboration among consumers, families, advocates, providers, and administrators, including building coalitions to transform community mental health services and supports;
Increasing the opportunities for knowledge application and field-based skill building of self-management/self-help approaches; and
Increasing consumer participation in all aspects of mental health system transformation, including planning, development, evaluation, and policy formation.

These national organizations act as resource centers for materials development and dissemination, training, skill development, interactive communication opportunities, and networking activities to facilitate self-help approaches, recovery concepts, and empowerment. The TACs were evaluated between 2001-04. To view results from the evaluation click here.