A NEW scheme has been launched in Mayo to guide people in their choice of good quality self-help books in the local library for common psychological and emotional issues.
The focus of the Healthy Reading Scheme is to highlight the availability of a wide variety of self-help books which can help people deal with common problems they may encounter in their lives such as anxiety, depression, stress and bereavement.
The scheme – a joint initiative between the HSE in Mayo and Mayo County Library – is being launched at the library in Castlebar by Dr Meena O’Neill, principal psychologist with the HSE in Mayo, and Cllr Joe Mellett, chairman of Mayo Co Council.
Under the scheme, two lists of books – one for adults and one for parents of children – that have been recommended by health professionals have been drawn up and these books can be accessed free, from the local libraries in Mayo.
Some of the issues on which books are available to parents and children include bullying, eating disorders, family separation, divorce, bereavement, self-esteem and exams.
According to Dr O’Neill, the new scheme is a variation of a scheme that is very common in the UK at primary care level. The UK scheme is run as a book prescribing scheme with GPs giving patients a written prescription for a book which they take to their local library.
The scheme in Mayo, along with two other reading schemes, being run in Fingal and Meath, aims to make good quality self-help material available more widely at primary care level. With self-help now a booming industry, people can often find it difficult to know what books to choose, but Dr O’Neill stressed that the best outcomes were achieved using materials based on therapies that would normally be delivered by psychological therapists.
“The research shows that good outcomes have only been demonstrated with the use of very high quality self-help material. This is usually quite structured material where people work through exercises and keep a diary, very akin to talk therapies,” she said.
The full lists are available on www.mayolibrary.ie
