Success for students with mental illness

Joy SharpeOutreach

Coordinator Shoalhaven

Access to Horticulture 9071 Certificate I in Access to Work and

Training Jim Da Silva Farm West Nowra 2 days / week for 18 weeks Horticulture electives and employability

skills units Units are chosen to suit the work to be

done and the students’ interests and needs

Helping hands mosaic made by students

A partnership between St Vincent De Paul Society Helping Hands – a project of the

Schizophrenia Foundation TAFE Horticulture and Outreach TAFE Teacher Consultants Equity With input and assistance from

Illawarra brain Injury Service, Flagstaff ( Disability Employment Provider)

Key People – the driving force Kelly Upton – TAFE Teacher Katy Smith -Helping Hands

Coordinator Steve Sweeney - Jim Da Silva Farm

Manager Ninu Sethi – teacher Consultant

Psychiatric Disabilities The students

Kelly , Katy and Steve

History TAFE have been running a Cert II in

Horticulture for a couple of years at the farm in partnership with Helping Hands

Funding has been sourced from a variety of local, state and federal Govt departments for infrastructure

Kelly has developed the plan for the garden and students and volunteers have created the garden

Outreach has been involved from semester 2 , 2008 using the Cert I to provide a pathway into Cert II in Horticulture

The students 12 enrolled All have disabilities – some more

than one Mental illness, brain injury, physical

disability, learning disability 9 men and 3 women Late teens to 50’s

Positives A peaceful, beautiful learning

environment Learning by doing Assessment on the job Support from teacher consultants Team work from coordinator,

teachers , teacher consultants , support teachers

Practical support All students have interview with teacher

consultants Plans in place including strategies for

dealing with health issues Teleconference with all TC after first week Teacher also studying Cert IV in Mental

Health Support workers from Helping Hands and

other agencies involved Additional teacher funded by TC , LLN learner

support for one student

People in all our classes are struggling with mental health

WOW class held at Family support

6 regulars – all have experienced depression, anxiety and drug and alcohol

A supportive environment has broken down the stigma and allowed for discussion and sharing

Students’ suggestions to make the learning environment positive for learners with mental

illness Don’t be judgemental Make people feel equal and

comfortable Recognise what people know Treat everyone the same Don’t make a big thing about the

mental illness Don’t ask people to share- wait till

they feel comfortable Everyone be aware of

confidentiality Be careful of the language we use

Helpful strategies Bringing the Counsellor and

Teacher Consultant in to run relaxation and stress

management sessions Talk about learning and memory

strategies Talk about counselling services

Dealing with anxiety Allow people to go for a walk or get

out of the class room if they feel anxious or stressed

Provide plenty of toilet paper Teach stress management

strategies – breathing ,rubber band on wrist

Change our self talk “I find it difficult” not “I can’t”

Sensitivity Understand the side effects of drugs

and how they impact on learning , concentration ,memory

Be aware that remarks or discussions can trigger past trauma

Follow up incidents where someone gets upset

Let people know that they can come back to the course when things get better – they haven’t failed

Understand that some people don’t want to disclose because of stigma

My personal view Balance an understanding

of the devastation and loss of mental illness with a sense of hope and expectation of recovery

Focus on the person not the problem

Normalisation Mental health is a

continuum

Resources Mental Health First Aid (Professional

Development) Video: Angels and Demons

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope/interactive/angelsanddemons/

Beyond Blue the National Depression initiative http://www.beyondblue.org.au

SANE Australia http://www.sane.org/

discussion Share your positive experiences

with students with mental illness What are the success factors? What are the helpful support

strategies? What is your action plan?