“Amb tu” support service for people with a mental health diagnosis in the exercise of their legal and social capacity (Barcelona Metropolitan Area)

The “Amb tu” Support Service arises from the need to provide care, guardianship and protection of rights for people whose legal capacity has been modified (totally or partially) by court ruling. We offer continuity of support to the people under guardianship, while guaranteeing non-discrimination, as well as a comprehensive approach covering personal, social and financial aspects, aimed at improving their quality of life and restoring social and community ties.

Cases are received and coordinated with the courts in collaboration with the Departament de Treball, Afers Socials i Famílies (DTASF) de la Generalitat de Catalunya.

The main objectives of the service are:

• To defend the rights of people under guardianship.
• To work together with the person under guardianship in order to review and adjust the protection measure assigned by the courts, if deemed appropriate.

The objectives of each area are as follows:

Since the Service was launched in 2008, a total of 450 people have been served, and every year the courts accept an average of 30 additional guardianship appointments. Of the people served so far, 70% are men and 30% women, generally with a diagnosis of Dual Diagnosis (mental health and addictions) and with an average age of between 40 and 50.

The Service is run by an interdisciplinary team that includes professionals specialised in mental health and addictions, as well as in law.

Owing to the nature of the service, the profile of the people served and the specialisation of the team’s professionals, we constantly interact with the various care networks and public or private resources.

This has helped us to establish ourselves as experts in dealing with highly complex cases. For this reason, through the service’s Management, we sit on the Board of Directors of ENCAIX (Federation of Guardianship Organisations for Mental Health Care).