A new mental health promotion programme is being rolled out in secondary schools in Dublin. Sylvia Thompsonreports
YOUNG PEOPLE need to realise that seeking help is a sign of strength and not of weakness.
This is the key message in a new mental health promotion programme which is currently being rolled out to secondary schools throughout Ireland.
The Working Things Out programme, which will form part of the emotional health module in the Social, Physical and Health Education (SPHE) subject, has been developed by a team at the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services at the Mater Hospital in Dublin.
“We realised that schools are a very useful place to do mental health promotion work because the message is normalised and presented as part of the standard curriculum,” says Mike Power, project leader of the Working Things Out through SPHE programme.
According to Power, about one in five young people will experience some type of mental health problem.
A key element of the programme is the inclusion of real-life experiences of Irish teenagers told through animated stories on a CD rom. Through this medium, teenagers get a chance to see how other young people coped with situations that they might find themselves in.
For example, one boy speaks about how he was bullied in primary school which led on to other bullying incidents in secondary school. “My advice is to get help early on and don’t let things get out of control,” he says. There is another story about a teenage girl whose brother died by suicide. “It took me two years to talk about it . . . I got depressed . . . But the worst thing you can do is sit in your room by yourself,” she explains.
Psychologist Mike Power is keenly aware of the fact that many teenagers have to wait a long time to get access to professional counselling services. “It’s a scandal that young people have to wait so long to access professionals but we see children for whom school is their anchor and this programme is about enhancing young people’s resilience when facing life’s challenges.
“The programme shows them that there is a variety of solutions to youth mental health problems,” he says.
“These include improving family communications, supporting teenagers with their learning and dealing with bullying. Our aim is to prevent youth mental health problems becoming chronic.”
Sharon McGrath, national coordinator of the SPHE support service (post primary), says the programme is a valuable tool to be used by trained teachers within the emotional health module of SPHE.
“It’s new territory in that the stories are from real Irish children. But this form of topic-driven health education isn’t effective in itself. It is one methodology that can be incorporated into a programme which helps children build their confidence and self-esteem.”
McGrath is keen to stress that such a programme can be taught only by trained teachers. Currently, training is offered to teachers by regional co-ordinators from the SPHE post primary support service.
McGrath says programmes such as this one has the potential to trigger reactions in children if it is not part of a wider module on looking after your emotional health.
She also stresses that SPHE teachers need to take the role of facilitator rather than knowledge giver, encouraging role play and group work in class. “We’ve had an excellent response from teachers who have taken the training but the reality is that we still don’t have enough trained teachers in SPHE,” she adds.
Rita Meagher is a guidance counsellor in Colaiste Choilm Christian Brothers School in Swords, Co Dublin.
“It’s crucial that this programme is introduced in second year and that it is used to enhance the various modules within SPHE,” she says.
“The big problem is finding resources that are up to date and speak in a language that children understand. This programme does this but it will be important to review it and update it regularly,” she adds.
Mike Power also points out that the programme has components which are valuable to both teachers and parents. For instance, the teachers’ resource book encourages teachers to look after their own mental health.
And, schools which organise parents evenings on such programmes can offer opportunities to parents to learn new ways of communicating with teenagers which can enhance the entire family’s mental health.
“Parents should find out more about the SPHE in their children’s schools,” says McGrath. “Schools cover the different modules in ways they choose and when modules such as substance abuse, personal safety, communication skills and relationships and sexuality are covered in school, it gives parents an opportunity to talk about these subjects at home too,” she says.
New mental health programme
The Working Things Out through SPHE is one part of a two-strand research project headed by Prof Carol Fitzpatrick, professor of child psychiatry at University College Dublin, and Dr Martin O’Sullivan, clinical director of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services at the Mater Hospital in Dublin.
The project received €1 million funding from the Health Research Board to be used over a five-year period which ends in March 2011.
The funding covers the development of materials, training of personnel and employment of two project leaders – psychologist Mike Power who has developed the programme for schools and social worker Eileen Brosnan who is using the same materials to upskill therapists working with young people.
More than 1,200 students in 19 secondary schools in the Dublin area are taking part in a randomised controlled study of the programme, the results of which will be available later this year.