Email

Print

Mental illness comes in different forms and it’s all around us, we confront it on the streets, in homes and in the community. But in most cases, that is where it stays, and those suffering are isolated and shunned. Health professionals are pleading to the public to break this barrier and reach out to those in need. Today a ceremony was held at the Battlefield Park to commemorate World Mental Health Day and psychiatric nurse Ingrid Claire told us how we can help those who are caught in the grips of mental illness.

Ingrid Claire - Psychiatric Nurse
"The focus on this theme this year is getting the public and anyone does not have to be a professional to do this, so you do not need a counsellor, you don’t need a psychiatric nurse all you need is to have the knowledge to do this and so we are involving the public in getting this information as to how you go about helping."

Courtney Weatherburne
"Talk to me about that, what are some of the tips, something that as the public, family members, loved ones can know in dealing with persons suffering from mental illness?"

Ingrid Claire - Psychiatric Nurse
"When it comes to family and friends, we know our loved ones, we know when something is a little different from the norm for them and so as a result of this when you see their not functioning in the norm you know them to be in, then you know something is up and you might not know what but if it is something with the mind you can more or less tell and you could approach them and tell them that we have the mental health services that could assist you , we have maybe the hospital you can visit but the key thing is getting that information so you can link them to those services.â€￾

"We also reach out by doing street visits, community visits, home visits, so we go out into the homes as well we are also focusing on doing family groups, consumer groups so apart from the consumer the family is also involved."

The theme for this year’s observance is “Dignity in Mental Health: Psychological and Mental Health First Aid for All. For those who are seeking help, you can go to the KHMH if its an emergency such as an anxiety attack or if you need to speak to someone you can go to any of the clinics countrywide.