Bettering the lives of the mentally ill

Lack of proper rehabilitation could lead to a recurrence of a mental illness.

In the long term Susan plans to build a halfway house, modelled along the lines of a facility she visited in Kansas City, US this year.  In such a place, those who are recovering from a mental illness will be able to access rehabilitative services.

Lucy envisions more USP support groups across the country in the future, because for now the organization is crippled by lack of sufficient resources to reach many people who are affected by mental diseases.

“For instance, we don’t have adequate transport so we can’t reach people who may need our support who reside in areas far away from our base. Sometimes the support groups need to travel to visit members who are down but are unable to,” she adds.

Susan and her colleagues face an uphill task in their endeavour to provide care and support for those living with mental illnesses as well as fight stigma and discrimination. However it is a challenge they are willing to take up as the are determined to make life better for the mentally ill.

..............................

The World Mental Health day is celebrated globally on October 10 but because it is a public holiday in Kenya, the national celebrations are always held on the last Friday of October.  This year’s celebrations will take place on Friday October 31 at the Mathari Hospital, Nairobi.  The Guest of Honour will be the Minister of Medical Services Prof. Anyang’ Nyong'o. This year's theme is: 'Making mental health a global priority: Scaling up services through citizen advocacy and action.' Further information can be downloaded fromwww.wfmh.org.