The concept of recovery has moved to the centre of mental health policy and service delivery for persons who have been diagnosed with a mental illness in Vancouver BC Canada. This article provides a review of the literature on recovery in mental health. A brief definition of recovery is given, followed by a historical review of the development of the philosophy of recovery with emphasis on the cultural implications of recovery for different countries and organizations. Much like other community mental health systems Vancouver Community Mental Health Services (VCMHS) has not yet identified a specific model or framework to guide the development of recovery-oriented services. To that end three models and a framework of recovery are presented and possible next steps in integrating recovery are highlighted for VCMHS. The discussion on model development with a focus on the cultural implications and the process of implementing recovery has relevance for the development of mental health services internationally (Schinkel & Dorrer, 2007).
