Mental Health Ireland (Supporting Positive Mental Health) Annual Report, 2003
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Mental Health Ireland (supporting positive mental health) annual report, 2003. Item Type Report Authors Mental Health Ireland (MHI) Citation Mental Health Ireland (MHI). 2004. Mental Health Ireland (supporting positive mental health) annual report, 2003. Dublin: Mental Health Ireland. Publisher Mental Health Ireland (MHI) Download date 04/10/2021 13:22:49 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10147/575162 Find this and similar works at - http://www.lenus.ie/hse .i-· .", ... Mental Health Ireland Supporting Positive Mental Health annual report I I I I , I, : Mental Health Ireland , SUpporting' Positive Mental Health , , I, annualreport ~ , 2003 Mental Health I,-eland SUPPOI Ling POSi[Ne .Memal Heal!h f"lensana House 6 Adelaide Street. Dun Laoghaire Co. Dublin Tel; 0 1-28~ 1166 Fax; 0 1-2B~ 1736 Email: [email protected] Websile: \<WIVV.mentalhealthireland.ie Contents page Chairperson's Address 6 Mental Health Promotion in Schools and with Young People 8 National Public Speaking Project 8 Design A Cover Project 9 Scouting Ireland CSI Melvin Award 10 Mental Health Matters Project 10 Pro-Teen Matters Web Magazine I I Information 12 World Mental Health Day 13 Annual Conference I 5 Local Mental Health Associations 16 Human Resources 34 Mental Health Policy 37 Partnerships 38 Appendix i: Audited Accounts 41 Appendix ii: Local Mental Health Associations - Contact Details 54 Mental Heallh Ireland: Annual Report 200) I ] • Chief Executive Officer Mr Brian Howard Board of Directors Officers Chairperson: Ms M Molloy Vice Chail-person: Dr G Lyster Honorary Secretary: Mr B Glanville Honorary Treasurer; Mr JWhelan Members Ms F AI-Sayyed Mr J McGetrick Mr J Casey Mr P McGowan Dr J Connolly Mr P J Murphy Mr A Fahy Mr D 0'0"""" MrT Giblin Fr D J O'Mahony DrT GI-egg Mrs F Ryan Mr M Hughes Registered Office Mensana House 6, Adelaide Street Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin Bankers Bank of Ireland Smithfield, Dublin 7 ond AlB Investment Managers Ltd. Percy Place. Dublin 4 Auditors Brenson Lawlor. Brenson Lawlor House, Argyle Square Morehampton Road, Dublin 4 Date of Incorporation As a company limited by guarantee. 22nd November, 1966 Place of Incorporation Dublin, Republic of Ireland. Mental Health Ireland: Annual Report laO] I 5 Chairperson's Address Dear friends. The Annual Repor-t 2003 renects a year of intense activity at local and national leveL in pursuance of our aims of p!'Omoting positive mental heatth and supporting people with J mental illness. As part of our work in campaigning for improved set"vices for people with mental illness during 2003. MHI was actively involved with the Disability Legislation Consultation Group in campaigning for disability legislation. and also co-hosted a conference with Amnesty Intemational and Schizophr-enia Ireland on 'MenUlI Heillth The Right La Best Praaice'. MHI also made submissions 1O the Expert Group on Mental Health Policy. the Barr Tribunal and on the Criminal Justice Insanity Bill. All of these issues continue to be pressing and MHI will continue to campaign to ensure their development and resoluLion as appropriate. 100) was a year in which mental illness achieved significant public attention in response to the publication of a number' of reports by Amnesty International on the Slate of mental health services in Ireland. Their work is to be commended but remarkably despite their objective analysis highlighting the continued inadequacies of mental health services. there has been no increase in the budget ror these services in 100'1, apart from one million euro allocated to lhe Central Mental Hospital. Young people remain a core bcus of our work and the importance of this focus is highlighted by the findings of the Public Attitudes to Mental Illness research commissioned by rvlentaI Health Irel'lnd dur-ing the year; which highlighted a tendency for younger people to be less well informed and to hold more negative attiludes towards menlal illness. 6 I Mental Health Ireland: Annual Report 200] Access to information is central both in addressing negative attitudes to mental illness and in promoting an increased understanding on the importance of positive mental health. To this end MHI published a series ofinfonnation leaflets in April 2003 on issues ranging from stress. to mental health and young people and accessing the mental health services. A further development in the Information service was the inclusion of a new element of the MHI website, which provides a comprehensive listing of voluntary support groups operating around the country in areas relevant to mental health. The increasing need for access to information resources is reflected in the continued increase in the number of calls and emails received from members of the public seeking information on issues related to mental health. Additiona! information is included in this year's report on the work of Mental Health Associations around the country. While it is impossible to accurately reflect the depth and range of work, the report gives a flavour of the valuable community based work being undertaken and the central role of volunteers in the continued support of people with a mental illness and in pmmoting positive mental health. The year ahead promises to be both busy and challenging. MHI will continue to campaign actively for improved services and for the introduction of rights based disabilities legislation. I hope that local Associations can also use the fortcoming local elections as an opportunity to ensure that the mental health needs of our communities are recognised and addressed by local representatives. Over my past two years as Chairperson. it has been a privilege to witness the dedication and generosity of volunt.eers throughout the country who work tir-elessly in fund raising, developing housing projects. organising and adjudicating at public speaking projects and in developing social suppor-ts for people experiencing mental illness. Your efforts are appreciated and [ wish you every success with this work in the coming year. Maria Mollo), Chairperson - MHI Mental Health Ireland: Annual Report 1003 I 7 Mental Health Promotion and Young People Mental Health Ireland operates i\ number' of mental health edUGltion programmes with young people. This work continued in 2003 through the National Public Speaking Project the Design a Cover Project. the Scouting Ireland CSt Melvin Award. the Mental Health Matters Resour"ce Pack and Pro-Teen Matters Web Magazine. Information on each project is outlined below. National Public Speaking Project The National Public Speaking Pmjecl for" senior' students in Post Pr'imary Schools and Colleges aims to promote awareness among young people of the importance of positive mental health and of the causes and effects or mental illness as well as I"educing negative attitudes and prejudices associated with mental illness. Participation has the added benefit of introducing students to public speaking skills which can lead to improved self esteem and selkonfidence. Over 220 schools participated in the project in 2003 with the National Final held in Trinity College on Saturday 5th ,April. The three participating teClms of S1. Vincent's Secondary School, Cork Community SchooL Gorey, Co, Wexford and Loreto College, Mullingar. Co. Westmeath made challenging and informative presentations on the topic 'Mental Health for All - a Worthy Aspiration or an Attainable Reality?' Mr Adrian Munnelly, Carr Communications, attended as Guest Assessor and congratulated all nine speaker"5 on the high standard attained. The team from LOI'eta College. Mullingar took the honours to !.he Midlands far the first time in the history of the Project The team tutor and representatives fmm MHI travelled to Belgium as guests of MHI and the Flemish MHA Mr Paul ArLee!. Director of the Flemish Mental Health Association (WGG) again organised a comprehensive educational and social programme which included visits to the Guislain Museum of Psychiatry and community mental health facilities. This was the twenty second consecutive year that the Pmject has been pmmOled since it was introduced nationally in 1981. The Project owes its success in no small way to the support received locally ilnd regionally and Mental Health Ireland acknowledges with sincel"e thanks the significant contribution made by a variety of people to the National Public Speaking Projed. This includes students, te<lchers, school managements, parents, local MHAs, Development Officers. Central Oflice SLafT and we are particularly indebted 8 I Mental Health Ireland: Annual Report 2003 i The'winning ream rrom-Lorelo~SecondQry School, MulJingar. pictured with tutor Audrey:Cannon to the members ofthe National Pu.blic Speakin~,Committee, under the Cha,irmanship of Aidan Fahy The 23rc{ ProjE;ct was laun~hed in September with a nE;w appro<;lch to both promotional m,1tenals and modified rules. An Effective Communication Workshop,'for the' benefit of participating teachers and adjudicators. was held on" Saturday 8th November and was presented byTom Savage, Carr Communications. Design a Cover Project Design a ~o\:,!=r is a national Art ProjeSl tJ"le purpose of. which is to create an awareness of mental health by inviting students in Post Primary·Schools to desig~ the cover of the promotional booklet for the Public Speaking Project on the -TlJe 2qQ~ D_esign Q:Cq~~rW[nnet-:.£jrY!~oC.9'tYlo_~Of]Y. theme Positive Mental Health: Causeway Comprehensive '·School. Co. Kerry. Mental Health Ireland, Annual ReportzOOl 9 Having being successfully piloted in the Eastern and Nor-th Easter-n r·egions, Design il Cover was introduced as a n<ltional pruject in 2000 and continues to receive a positive response from an teachers and students, Almost 800 entries were received in 2003 and through a process of local and regional selection, thirteen entries were selected for exhibition at the National Public Speaking Final. Once again the quality of the ar-twork submitted was of exceptional high standard with the entry from Eimear O'Mahony, Comprehensive School.