NEWS RELEASE

Monday 5 October 2009

World Mental Health Day events focus on primary care

To mark World Mental Health Day, 10 October 2009, the Mental Health Promotion Network, which is coordinated by the Public Health Agency, has organised a series of events focusing on mental health promotion within primary care.

The events reflect this year’s global campaign theme which aims to highlight the need for more attention to mental health in primary care and will be targeted at GPs, practice nurses and healthcare workers across Northern Ireland.

Deirdre McNamee of the Public Health Agency said: “Staff working in the primary care setting have a crucial role in promoting the mental health and wellbeing of the individuals they are working with, their families and indeed whole communities. It is suggested that around 30% of people who visit their GP have a mental health component to their health problem and some 90% of people with significant mental health problems are cared for entirely within primary care.¹

“These frontline healthcare workers are often the first point of contact for many people with a mental health problem and have the advantage of being an easily accessible community based service delivered by people who know the local community.”

The Minister for Health, Michael McGimpsey said: "With the approach of World Mental Health Day it is timely to highlight the importance of good mental health in our lives, and the contribution made by the statutory and voluntary sectors in helping people deal with mental health issues. Positive mental wellbeing is as every bit as important as sound physical health. Improved mental health services and the effective promotion of mental wellbeing are priorities for my Department.

“Up until recent years mental health services have been considered as the 'Cinderella' service within health and social care. That is why I invested £54million over the CSR period to improve services.

"I recently began the process to introduce a single legislative bill to help better co-ordinate Mental Health services and my Department is leading the development of a new Promoting Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy. The new strategy will recognise the importance of improving people's mental wellbeing rather than just treating mental health problems when they occur."

Key note speaker, Dr Maryanne Freer, Director of Primary Care Partners, has developed a toolkit entitled Mainstreaming mental health promotion into primary care, and will present a practical guide on how to help patients make healthier choices about their mental health. Dr Freer said: “Most people at some point in their life go through some form of stress, loss, depression or mental health problem. Many seek help from their GP or practice team who look to help as well as prevent the problem getting bigger. Sometimes medication may be required. Research says that often other things such as self help, talking things over and exercise may be just as good and are worth a try.

“GPs and practice teams are keen to do the very best possible, and to this end are working at understanding more what works best, how to put the evidence into practice and how people across the whole of Northern Ireland can get this help from their GP practice.”

Andrew Willoughby, writer and community educator, will deliver a workshop that focuses on how participants can promote and protect their own mental health and wellbeing as well as those they are caring for. Andrew said: “Up until now, we have assumed that wellbeing was natural, so there was no need to learn wellbeing skills and certainly not for healthcare staff themselves as their job was to serve others' needs. But work-related stress is now the leading cause of absenteeism – 40 million days per year in the UK. This workshop will give people a new framework to understand how wellbeing is created, and several key skills to create breakthroughs in personal wellbeing. As people regain control of their own wellbeing, they can then see how to systematically build the wellbeing in their families and wider communities.”

Details of the events are as follows:

Northern Health and Social Care Trust – Tuesday 6 October 2009, 2pm–4pm at All Saints Parish Centre, Ballymena. (Andrew Willoughby/ for community and voluntary sectors). Contact: Jayne McConaghie, Tel: 028 2563 5575.

Belfast Health and Social Care Trust – Wednesday 7 October 2009, 10am–1pm at Malone House, Shaw’s Bridge. Contact: Maria Morgan, Tel: 028 9056 4941.

South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust – Wednesday 7 October 2009, 10am–4pm at the Marine Court Hotel, Bangor. Contact: David Tumilty, Tel: 028 9250 1378.

Southern Health and Social Care Trust – Thursday 8 October 2009, 9.15am–12.30pm at Altnaveigh House, Newry. Contact: Angela Corr, Tel 028 3083 4281.

ENDS

Notes to the Editor

The Mental Health Promotion Network is coordinated by the Public Health Agency and has representatives from the five Health and Social Care Trusts and voluntary and community sector organisations from across Northern Ireland who work in the area of mental health promotion.

World Mental Health Day takes place annually on 10 October. The 2009 theme is Mental Health Promotion in Primary Care: Enhancing Treatment and Promoting Mental Health. Further details are available at: www.wfmh.com/wmhday/about.html

For media enquiries contact:

The Public Health Agency Ormeau Avenue Unit on Tel: 028 9031 1611.

¹Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health and NHS Alliance. Briefing 19. An executive briefing on primary care mental health services.  London: Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, 2002.