SAMH Blog

Last year, SAMH took part in a human rights symposium, as part of our Respect Protect Fulfil campaign. We asked our Trustee Board member Professor Kay Hampton to tell us about it.

In October 2011 SAMH Policy Officer Aidan Collins and I participated in an exciting symposium in London at the Law Society of England and Wales. The event was organized by Just Fair (a Human Rights campaigning organisation) in partnership with the EHRC, Essex Law School and the Law Society of England and Wales.

This high-level conference was designed to provide a platform for more than 200 judges, scholars, policy-makers, legal practitioners and community representatives to exchange ideas, discuss projects, programmes of activities and consider the problems and prospects for the effective realisation of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESC Rights) in the UK. As observers at the last UN Committee on Social and Economic Rights in Geneva (2009), SAMH presented a report outlining concerns and issues relating to Mental Health and Human Rights in the UK and the organisers of this event invited us to share our progress in this regard.

The conference programme comprised a mixture of keynote addresses, breakout sessions/workshops as well as informal opportunities to exchange ideas and build working relationships. A broad range of thematic areas were covered including: -the background to Human Rights and its relevance to the UK; Realising Human Rights in an age of austerity; Social and Economic Rights in a British Bill of Rights; community empowerment and campaigning; poverty; litigation and Inequalities in Health. We presented a paper on Day Two of the conference on Mental Health and Human Rights, focusing mainly on how to attain the highest attainable standard of Mental Health in the UK. In our paper, we drew on SAMH current work programmes to illustrate how we were able to successfully integrate Human Rights principles and outcomes in our core policies and activities. The conference organisers recently uploaded a large amount of conference material onto the Just Fair website, including photos, pod casts and session plans. In addition, they have also created individualised conference pages for each contributor and my full presentation is now available as audio files.

Judging from the post-conference feedback it is clear that our input had inspired and impressed a number of voluntary organisations, as we appear to be one of very few currently demonstrating notable progress in this area. Indeed, in his post conference note to us, organiser Jonny Butterworth had this to say: “Your preparation for the session plan and your contribution to the workshop ensured a high quality discussion on UK inequalities in health. This was all reflected in some serious participation, laughter and enthusiasm…I particularly enjoyed your joint call for an ESCR movement…Just Fair are particularly keen to act as a catalyst, hub and advocate for this movement and I would greatly value any further thoughts which you have in this regard.”

In summary, the conference not only provided a platform for SAMH to share its valuable work regarding the realising of Human Rights for the most vulnerable in society but it also provided a great opportunity to create sustainable networks for future collaborative work. Since the October event, SAMH has contributed to two HR events organised by the British Institute of Human Rights in November 2011. More importantly, it was encouraging to see their reference to SAMH work in their submission to the Commission on a UK Bill of Rights. In describing how Human Rights can be effectively used to frame organisational objectives they say: “Alongside its outward-facing human rights programme, Respect, Protect, Fulfill, SAMH (the Scottish Association for Mental Health) seeks to develop a human rights based culture within the organisation by building the capacity and awareness of staff. SAMH believes that adopting the standards of human rights law even when it does not apply to SAMH directly ensures high quality services with staff and service users feeling valued and empowered to use human rights to improve their own lives and the lives of others. To take this forward SAMH has developed an internal guide together with training to demonstrate to staff how human rights relate to their work.”

I look forward to working closely with SAMH in 2012 to progress further collaborative initiatives in the field of Human Rights and Mental Health

Professor Kay Hampton
SAMH Trustee

Volunteers make a massive contribution to SAMH’s work. We asked James, a volunteer in our Policy and Campaigns Team, to write about his experiences.

I have now been volunteering with SAMH for a few months and would like to both explain why I decided to become a volunteer and reflect on my experience so far.

I had been involved in voluntary projects before but due to work commitments had not been able to do this on a regular weekly basis until recently.

The main reason that I decided to volunteer with SAMH in particular is because I have seen at close hand the ways in which mental health issues can affect people and the positive differences that the work of mental health charities can have on these individuals.

Although I have only been here for a short time, I have already been surprised at the number of areas that SAMH is involved, ranging from providing health services & lobbying parliament on mental health law to setting up community engagement projects which attempt to address health care issues.

It is also very rewarding for me because the volunteer work provides me with diversity and new skills. I always learn something new.

Wednesday 1st February is Breathing Space Day. Breathing Space is a free, confidential phone and web-based service for people who are experiencing low mood, depression or anxiety.

The theme of Breathing Space 2012 is “Well Wednesday” and we are all being encouraged to take a well earned break to do something we enjoy. So as our National Programme for Suicide Prevention Manager Kirsty Keay enjoys writing poetry, she took time out to do just that!

So Wednesday the 1st February is Breathing Space Day
Will you stop and take some time out – or will you simply say:
“Breathing space day? Time out? That isn’t for me,
I’m fine, I’m good, coping great – can’t you see?
Aye I’m run off my feet and a little bit stressed,
And I’ve got the cold and ok I’m not feeling my best,
But I work in mental health – I know what to do
I know how to fix me when I’m down and blue….

A bit of gardening, baking, maybe a bath or a run
I know, I know, do something I love – something for fun,
All these things are easier said than done you know,
Anyway, I’m strong I can stop those feelings before they grow,
Keep them contained, inside, where it’s just me,
Hidden away, under control where no-one can see
So please don’t worry, I don’t need any space
I don’t need to stop to breathe, I know my pace….

Call Breathing Space on 0800 83 85 87. The phoneline is open 24 hours at weekends (6pm Friday – 6am Monday) and from 6pm to 2am on weekdays (Monday – Thursday).

Since coming into power in 2010, the UK Coalition Government has made clear its intention to overhaul the benefit system. It has said that drastic change is needed to help people to move into work and to ensure that the most vulnerable are supported. However, plans to reform the welfare system have left many people feeling anxious.

SAMH regularly hears from vulnerable people whose needs do not appear to have been understood or met by the welfare system. Worse still, people who genuinely need support have told us that they feel demonised for claiming the benefits to which they are entitled. This situation hasn’t been helped by the countless media stories which portray all benefits claimants as ‘workshy scroungers’.

A particular area of concern for many people is the Work Capability Assessment (WCA). This helps decide whether people are able to work or to do work related activities. A recent review of the WCA found that it is not sensitive to mental health needs, and that it can inaccurately reflect the impact that mental health problems can have on the ability to work.

At SAMH, we wanted to learn more about people’s experiences of the Work Capability Assessment. We also wanted to know whether recent changes to improve the fairness and effectiveness of the WCA had had any impact. Therefore, we undertook a study of around fifty people who had recently gone through WCA. This week we published the findings in our report – ‘Up to the Job?’

The study found that almost three-quarters of respondents did not feel that the person conducting the assessment understood their condition. It also found that none of those who had seen the report of their assessment thought it was accurate. These findings suggest that the Government’s changes to the test, which were intended to address initial criticisms of its accuracy, have not yet had the desired effect.

People with mental health problems need to be able to rely on the benefits system’s ability to understand and assess the difficulties they face. We support attempts to help people with mental health problems get back to work – but the assessment process must be improved.

You may notice that our report contains many quotes from the people that took part in our study. This is because, in the face of current media myths and political debate, it easy to lose sight of the real people who are affected by failings in the welfare system. I hope that our report gives a voice to some of these people – it’s only by listening to their voices that we can hope to create a welfare system thats fair for all.

Aidan Collins
Policy Officer

(Photo used under Creative Commons Licence, courtesy of Flickr User Tony Austin)

Lots of people find Christmas difficult, organising family get-togethers, pacing the darkening streets looking for presents and pulling off a happy Christmas on a tight budget. But, whether you’re with friends and family or not, you might feel isolated and alone at Christmas. This can be really difficult, especially when it seems like everyone else is feeling festive.

Here are ten tips from SAMH (Scottish Association for Mental Health) to help you cope with the Christmas period, whether you’re alone, or surrounded by family and friends.

• Try to stay positive. Instead of seeing Christmas as a time to be dreaded or avoided, fight the cold and darkness and lift your mood by getting out a bit more. Experience the bustle and activity of Christmas, or see what Christmas events and activities are going on that you might want to attend.

• Don’t rely on alcohol to get you through the festive season. Some people find it easier to block out their pain or feelings of isolation, but remember – alcohol is a depressant, and will intensify any low mood you are already experiencing.

• Treat yourself! Once in a while, indulge yourself by doing something just for you.

• Do something that makes you feel good. In the run up to Christmas, you could try making a donation or volunteering with a charity that helps other people – it can be incredibly uplifting. Check the internet or your local library to see what’s happening in your area.

• Try and be more active physically. Yes, it might be cold or wet outside, but even a brisk, short walk can help improve your mood, and help you appreciate the season.

• At the end of the day, reflect on how your day has been and plan ahead for what you can do later, whether it’s the next hour or the next day.

• If your mental health is affected by the build up to Christmas and New Year, try preparing ways to make it an easier time for you. Could you find some talking therapies or counselling services from local organisations in advance? Could you have a chat with your GP about what you can do to stay well over Christmas?

• If you are alone and feeling emotional, acknowledge it. Maybe you’ll get tearful, regretful or sad, but try and think about why you feel the way you do. Something positive always comes from acknowledging how you feel and not bottling it up.

• Be analytical – what is it about Christmas that makes it difficult? Remember that despite the marketing and images of Christmas put out by the media, there are lots of people who don’t have a big, bright family Christmas.

• If you do need to talk to someone, remember that there are organisations there to help, whatever the season. See if there is a support group you could join that meets near you, or try calling one of these numbers.

Breathing Space on 0800 83 85 87

or

The Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90