Digest of the Mental Health Workshop May 2022 8 DAY 2 - DIALOGUE Participants Over 60 participants joined the workshop on day 2. There were more healthcare practitioners and policymakers than the previous day, as this day was structured to facilitate dialogue with the community and key stakeholders. The age range of community members was from 16 to 80 years old, whilst the practitioners and decisionmakers came from Essex, London, and Northhampton. Overview • Day 2 focused on facilitating dialogue between the community and policymakers and practitioners. The day began with a summary of the previous day about the research, what mental health looks like in the local community, and are the perceived local challenges and needs. • Apsana Begum MP shared personal and policy insights on mental health. She spoke passionately about the need to ensure services are designed with the local community in mind. The community was particularly supportive of her idea of having counselors in schools, and the need to ensure therapists understand intergenerational trauma such as that stemming from rapes during the Bangladeshi Liberation War. • Councillor Robert Davidson, the Mayor of Colchester, spoke about the need to help others and improve mental healthcare given the pandemic. Many participants raised the fact that the pandemic has been challenging for their mental health and they are concerned about close family or friends going through bereavement. • Councillor Rufia Ashraf, the Mayor of Northampton, drew upon the values of the Bangladeshi community and how the community is a resource for practitioners to work with. • The dialogue and roundtable discussions focused on how the community can get involved in mental healthcare policy and practice, how to improve mental healthcare treatment, and how to improve access to good mental healthcare. Salma Ahmed, Solma Ahmed with Apsana Begum MP
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTA4ODM=