Over 300 higher secondary and vocational higher secondary schools in Ernakulam will now have student and teacher volunteers trained in imparting mental health awareness.
This was thanks to a unique programme, ‘Mind Our Mind,’ organised jointly by the Kerala State Legal Services Authority and the District Legal Services Authority in association with Maithri, an NGO engaged in suicide prevention. Under the month-long programme, 1,000 students and teachers were trained in various aspects of mental health. Five students and two teachers each from the schools, mostly government schools, received the training.
The programme culminated with the trained volunteers taking an oath on mental health administered by the Ernakulam district principal judge Honey M. Varghese at SRV Higher Secondary School on Thursday (November 14) coinciding with Children’s Day.
“Our focus was on Plus One students so that we could further train them next year as well. The trained students and teachers organised a series of programmes in their schools during the fortnight leading up to Children’s Day to raise awareness about the importance of mental health,” said Thampy Mathai, deputy director, Maithri.
The programme got under way on October 10 coinciding with the World Mental Health Day when students and teachers from schools in Muvattupuzha and Kothamangalam taluks were given training. This was followed by a session for volunteers from Aluva and Paravur taluks on October 16 and from Kanayannur and Kochi taluks two days later.
“It was a very enriching experience personally as well since I was attending such a training for the first time. While there is increased awareness that mental health issues can be addressed through treatment, we got the impression that a majority of the students were hearing about the importance of mental health for the first time,” said Aneesha A.V., a teacher at Government Higher Secondary School, Kadamakudy.
Training sessions were conducted based on structured modules. Psychiatrists led classes on the stigma surrounding mental health, while other sessions covered mental health-related laws, legal protections, and various government schemes. Besides, lessons on life skills and suicide prevention were also included.
“Only 15% of suicides occur impulsively. So, we focused on training participants to detect symptoms exhibited by vulnerable individuals, such as their gradual withdrawal from society,” said Mr. Mathai. He added that inquiries were coming from more districts to organise similar programmes.
Published - November 15, 2024 01:16 am IST
