Care & Support of the Mentally Distressed

Chhahari Nepal for Mental Health: Progress Report- December 2014

Chhahari has been gradually developing new approaches and activities to provide better support to our clients. These include primarily the Welcome Centre and various other activities that have evolved as a consequence of our interactions with clients, carers, volunteers, networks and community members. 

1.Continuation of the Street Project:

Emphasis has been placed on building trusting relationships, enabling staff to connect with people living and coping with difficult circumstances and to respond to the unique condition of each person. We have increased our services towards:

• Continuation of regular home and field visits
• Thickening of home and field visits around Kumbeshwor area, this area has a large number of people suffering from mental health condition. ( following up on 7 clients so far)
• Regular follow up and communication being made with Aashadeep for the long term cases.
• Regular follow up to the Patan Mental Hospital and Patan Hospital assisting clients and family for the treatments.
• Locating new clients and interacting with more families and community members
• To this date, we have worked with 86 mentally distressed clients

1. The Welcome center and its Expansion:

The Welcome Centre at Chhahari was opened in as a direct reflection of the needs of the men and women with whom Chhahari was in contact through the Street Project. Open on Wednesdays, it is a place where the mentally distressed and their carers can engage in indoor activities and take part in counselling sessions and creative classes. We have over 15 clients and carers attending the session.

Activities carried out at the Welcome Centre:

• Draw/paint pictures; make greeting cards, photo frames, etc. The drawings are proudly displayed all over the walls at the Centre, individually signed by the clients.
• Clients are also encouraged to write poems and songs, and to sing and play musical instruments.
• Similarly, dance therapy activity was carried out, in which a dance teacher was appointed for the clients.
• Clients are engaged in exercise and meditation sessions to help them relax their mind and body.
• Making paper baskets and bookmarks, which we have managed to sell and is gradually increasing on demand.
• In some sessions movies/ documentaries are viewed, weekly or monthly local and international news are discussed and newspapers and magazines are read by the clients.
• Indoor games like puzzles, board games, etc and outdoor games like badminton and cricket and many other team building games are played.

 2. RTI Mental Health Project:

Implementation team:Students from Xavier’s College are involved. Focus of this project is to gain information regarding:

• Allocation of funds for mental health in Government and NGOs
• Procedures and criteria applied for NGOs to access funds for MH related activities
• Which NGO’s received funds from Government for MH with amount received?

3. Media and Publication:

Progress in our :

• Website, Facebook, YouTube
• 12 minute video from Marathon 2013 on our Facebook and website.
• 8 minute documentary launched and on our Facebook and Website.
• Working towards building up our new Website.
• Publication of Newsletter 2014

 4. Networking:

• JCI (Junior Chamber International) Patan: This year they have donated clothes for our clients and carers. They now have proposed to donate clothes for our clients and their family members once a year.
• Nepal Mental Health Network (NMHN): Working together with other Mental Health organisations that are active in raising issues on mental health in Nepal.
• Patan Mental Hospital and Patan Hospital: Working in co-ordination with the Patan Mental Hospital and Patan Hospital assisting clients and family for the treatments.
• Aashadeep Residential facility: Regular follow up and communication being made with Aashadeep for the long term cases.
• Restless Development: Building our relation with Restless Development to increase our research capabilities and expand our reach in the community. A Talk Program with the Restless Development was held on the 6^th of December.

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• CNMH_Progress_Report_2014.pdf (PDF)