Self-direction and the Social Determinants of Health

Social determinants of health-defined by the World Health Organization as "the social factors and physical conditions of the environment in which people are born, live, learn, play, work, and age"-are increasingly discussed as having relevance in community mental health service systems. This brief report describes how self-direction-an approach in which people with serious mental health conditions choose the services and supports that work best for them to support their recovery-is a tool that may directly and uniquely promote the social determinants of health by expanding the bounds of traditional service delivery to address the needs of the whole person.