An initiative will be set up in Galway in the coming months to engage with young people experiencing mental health difficulties and help them to access the support and services they require, writes Michelle McDonagh.
The Jigsaw project is the first of its kind in the Republic and aims to set the standard upon which similar projects around the State will be modelled.
The project is a partnership between Headstrong - the National Centre for Youth Mental Health, the HSE West, local business people and community leaders and young people.
The service, which incorporates a drop-in centre at Mary Street in Galway city and an extensive outreach programme, is expected to be operating by April or May.
The manager of the Jigsaw project, John Fitzmaurice, said that for 75 per cent of people who develop mental health problems throughout their lifetime, the first onset of this begins between the ages of 12 to 25.
"Early intervention has been shown to have a high success rate, and investing in the mental health of young people represents the most cost-effective action to prevent the continuous increase of mental health problems in all age groups.
"As well as the service in Galway city, we will have an outreach component whereby young people living in rural areas can access supports in their own community," he said.
Pointing out that it can be difficult for young people to navigate their way around the health system and know where to go for help, Mr Fitzmaurice said the role of Jigsaw was to ensure that young people could access the services and supports they need as easily as possible.
"As the name suggests, the idea of Jigsaw is to try to pull together all the pieces for young people and to build community support and enhanced capability in the community to be able to support our young people."
He explained that rather than over-professionalising mental illness, as can happen, the idea of this project is to upskill parents, teachers, community members and young people themselves to support young people in whatever way they need to be supported.
"Coming from a teaching background, I know that teachers sometimes feel they don't have the skills to deal with the most basic problems young people are dealing with, but often what they need most of all is a listening ear and a supportive voice to be there for them," he said.
While young people from the city and its surroundings can simply walk into the drop-in centre in Mary Street to access the services they need, Mr Fitzmaurice highlighted the need for multiple engagement points throughout the county. To this end, outreach counsellors will go out to rural areas to work with young people in their homes or communities and bring the services to them.
He said: "This is a really exciting project and I think it has the potential to make a real difference for young people in Galway. One of the big things about this project is that young people have been involved in its planning and design from the very beginning. This will be the first Jigsaw initiative in the country and it is planned to act as a pilot site that can be extended to other sites in the future."
The proceeds from the 21st annual Galway Cycle held by the Maynooth Students for Charity in April - which was launched in Galway yesterday - will go towards the Galway branch of Headstrong for the Jigsaw project.
For more information and to support this event, contact John Fitzmaurice at 087-7970639 or log on to www.galwaycycle.ie
