Recently, THRIVEGulu’s SAFE project team reached the village of Agonga to lead a mental health outreach and education session with the rural community members there. The session was packed with people wanting to talk about the burning mental health problems that they see in their community, such as alcohol abuse, sleepless nights, people isolating themselves from the community or talking to themselves, and domestic violence. Participants also brought up disputes over land, which is a huge problem in this area and can lead to much distress and conflict within the communities.
During the session, the participants also reported 33 suicides that had happened in their communities. These areas were badly affected during the conflict, and people continue to live with very few resources and very little access to services. Rates of trauma and other mental health problems in these areas are extremely high.
The session helped THRIVEGulu’s SAFE team to conduct outreach and to get the contacts of the clients that might need further help. They were able to identify at least 13 people who field counselors will be able to follow up with.
THRIVEGulu’s current one-year partnership with USAID’s SAFE program is working to strengthen systems of mental health and psychosocial support in rural communities in Northern Uganda. In addition to these community outreach sessions, so far the project has also trained health center professionals, village-level health workers, and local leaders on mental health issues and how to get people the help they need. The project has also created a team of community lay counselors, who are conducting mental health outreach in their communities and providing referrals to those in need to help.
Participants at this session in Agonga expressed their appreciation to the team for coming and talking about these issues. They experience the widespread effects of mental illness on their families and communities, and yet they see very few resources or services devoted to the issue. THRIVEGulu and the SAFE program are trying to change that.
