People with severe and persistent mental illness need access to treatment, rehabilitation, and support services within the community. These services can be provided through a variety of social, health, and mental health agencies, each with its own eligibility criteria and application and monitoring processes.

Community-based treatment enables people with mental disorders to maintain family relationships, friendships and jobs while receiving treatment, which facilitates early treatment and rehabilitation. This type of care is also associated with continuity of care, greater users’ satisfaction, increased adherence to treatment, better protection of human rights, and prevention of stigma.

(Ref: Mentalhealthandwellbeing.eu/community-based-approaches)
(Ref: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/430885)
(Ref: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1489876/)