Description
In the Czech Republic the fight against stigma and discrimination is still needed. Public attitudes carry dangerous prejudices and general awareness about the nature and manifestations of mental disorders is poor and inadequate. The main objective of the project is to raise awareness and decrease the stigmatization of mentally ill people. The aim of the project is to create an internet-based multidisciplinary counselling service with 3 professionals – a psychiatrist, psychologist, and a social worker, as well as 10 peer workers. These are people with their own experience with mental illness. This ensures quality, and free of charge, low-threshold service for people with mental illnesses, their families and the public. The target group of the project are mentally ill patients, their families and the public. The donor partner of the project is Buskerud and Vestfold University College in Norway. The role of the partner will primarily be consultative and focused on sharing the knowledge and know-how of university experts in the area.
Summary of project results
The need of the project was fight against negative prejudices and myths connected to mental illness and also stigmatisation, which affects not only patients but also their families. Stigma is also base for discrimination of mentaly ill persons. Goal of the project is support of quality care of mental health through researh and educational activity. The project delivered 8 outputs wchich were: selection of multidisciplinary counselling team (psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker, 10 peer counsellors); training of multidisciplinary counselling team; gathering experience with work of peer workers and counsellors from Norweigen partner; arrangement, operation, promotion and evaluation of multidisciplinary counselling; new design and updating of the platform of destigmatization web; increase of attendance of portal Stopstigma.cz; increase of number of questions input in internet multidisciplinary counselling; destigmatization of mentally ill and discipline of psychiatry. The project achieved all goals: the internet multidisciplinary counselling on a platform of destigmatization web was created; multidisciplinary counselling team was formed and educated; providing high quality, free of charge, low threshold service for people with mental illness, their relatives and laic public; providing easier access to quality and true information about mental illnesses; integrating 10 people with with personal experience with mental illness to the counselling team and by creating 7 destigmatizing videos.
Summary of bilateral results
The cooperation with the Norwegian partner Buskerud and Vestfold University College v Oslo (also University College of Southeast Norway, Drammen) started during year 2014 (internship in selected Norwegian services; lecture of partner´s representative at the Conference of Social Psychiatry in Prerov). Partnership was established during preparation of sub-project application. Three workshops with Norwegian partner took place during the sub-project. Partner´s experience with peer specialists involvement and the recovery concept in Norway were transferred, but especially the key questions related to functioning of internet multidisciplinary counselling service were discussed (security vs. openness, rules of counselling service, cooperation of counselors, evaluation) or the creating of destimatization videos (security of performers, destigmatization effect). Thanks to representatives of Norwegian partner all the project objectives were achieved and a multidisciplinary internet counselling service with engaging of peer counselors is the only one in Europe in this form. Cooperation with a Norwegian partner is planned even after the sub-project ends.