‘The Helpline’ – an initiative aimed at restoring mental wellbeing

Nov 05, 2017 News

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 “Part of the reason that a number of these issues persist is because people may not have access to the services that help to prevent them from reaching to a point of feeling that there is no hope to cope with their circumstances…this project has been changing that.”

 

By Sharmain Grainger

In the quest to offer support to persons in emotional distress, Youth Challenge Guyana [YCG]

since February of this year introduced a new project dubbed ‘The Helpline’. The project, which has a reach to multiple regions, has already provided its services to in excess of 500 people.
According to YCG’s Executive Director, Mr. Dmitri Nicholson, the European Union [EU]-funded initiative is one that is designed to help restore the mental wellbeing of those in need, through the means of 24-hour counselling services.
The initiative represents an addition to the Non-Governmental Organisation [NGO]’s health programme which has over the years included HIV/AIDS counselling and testing.
“Our goal is that people understand and seek counselling as a friendly service so that they can access it for their emotional needs,” said Nicholson of YCG’s newest venture.
To develop the plan for ‘The Helpline’, YCG was able to partner with two other NGOs – Merundoi and Family Awareness Consciousness Togetherness [Fact]. With $87.9 million EU funding, the project was literally able to take off in February. The initiative’s primary aim has been to join ongoing efforts to reduce the country’s suicide rate.
As such, the decision to introduce ‘The Helpline’ was not coincidental. Nicholson revealed that it was based on the findings of a research conducted by YCG that recognised the impact of suicide on the society.
Suicide has been one of the most glaring issues that have been linked to mental instability in Guyana. In 2012, Guyana was on the map for having the highest suicide rate in the world. However by 2015 the numbers started to decline. This translated to an all-time high suicide rate of 44.2 per 100, 000 population and had fallen to 20.6 per 100,000 population.
Although in recent years Guyana’s suicide rate has considerably dipped, Nicholson noted that the situation still remains a public health challenge. A number of homicides have also been linked to the depleted mental health state of the individuals.
“Part of the reason that a number of these issues persist is because people may not have access to the services that help to prevent them from reaching to a point of feeling that there is no hope to cope with their circumstances…this project has been changing that,” said Nicholson. It is for this reason, he divulged, that the initiative has been implemented as part of an inter-agency partnership.
Other regional organisations that are currently on board include: Hope For All, Exceptional Centre for Youth, SASOD, Volunteer Youth Corps, CPIC Monique’s Caring Hands, United Bricklayers, Comforting Hearts, Mibicuri Community Developers and Linden Care Foundation. Through this wide collaboration, counselling services are available to members of the public, of all ages, in Regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and 10
Although funding for the project will last for three years, Nicholson revealed that efforts are being made to build the capacity of the organisations involved so that the counselling services can be maintained.
“We are hoping that the linkages we have will help to strengthen people’s access to counselling services even after the three years of this project,” said Nicholson, who anticipates that the outcome will be a society which has more people with improved mental wellbeing.
“The better people feel about themselves, the less likely they are to harm themselves,” the YCG Executive Director said, as he noted that the counselling encounter is not intended to be a one-off interaction, since it is expected that an ongoing counsellor-client relationship will develop. “The programme is so designed that there are follow-up sessions so that the counsellor can determine whether the client is reaching personal goals that have been set out,” Nicolson informed.
The Ministry of Public Health has been deliberately putting measures in place to enhance its delivery of mental health services. In this regard, support such as ‘The Helpline’ initiative will help to advance such efforts.
According to Nicholson, “we have found over the years that the term mental health carries a stigma…some people think of it as only suicidal people or those who are insane and on the streets. We don’t want that stigma to be attached to the counselling services we offer, because we are catering to people’s emotional wellbeing, which is a category of mental health.”
He therefore amplified, “we want people to see our counselling as a first option and the best option when they encounter an overwhelming issue.”
Nicholson explained, too, that counsellors attached to ‘The Helpline’ are university-trained [both local and overseas] in the areas of Social Worker, Sociology and Psychology, and they are bound by a strict confidentiality clause to be a part of the counselling project.
While counselling is a main element of ‘The Helpline’ project, it also entails outreaches to schools, media events and other activities geared at enlightening the public about the nature of emotional difficulties that could warrant counselling. The majority of counselling sessions thus far have been for persons experiencing marital issues, those unable to cope with personal difficulties and financial crises.
“The feedback that we have gotten from clients is that some of them have already started to see in themselves a greater degree of self-awareness and a greater understanding of their own relationships with their spouses and their families. Many of them have seen changes in the way they have been able to relate to people, and some have actually said to us they found it more useful to talk to a professional rather than going to someone who does not understand counselling,” Nicholson related.
As part of the ongoing project, Merundoi, will in the new year undertake a serial drama for radio and television to highlight the various services that are available to help improve mental stability in the nation.

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