Community based mental health is one of the approaches in which low and middle income countries can adopt to eliminate many barriers in the treatment and care forpeople with mental illness and epilepsy.

As regular readers will know, Gede is currently a BasicNeeds Franchisee and is implementing a project aimed at supporting communities and families to access quality services for mental health conditions through community mental health with hospital support.

One component in the Model is Field Consultation, which will allow all stakeholders to make contributions within the initial phase of the Project.

Two days of activities took place within this week in Mpape and Mararaba communities. Users, Carers and other Stakeholders in these communities met in different groups to discuss ‘my world’, ‘my needs’ and ‘what next?’ –all of which are controlled sessions to address vital points within the groups.

People suffering from mental illnesses and epilepsy (with their Carers) participated actively in the different sessions.

With the enthusiasm that is perceived within the various groups, there is a consensus within participants that the formation of self-help groups will be pivotal in addressing stigma and discrimination that are associated with mental illness and epilepsy.

Watch this space for more update on the Project.