Lift The Lid On Mental Illness
On Tuesday night we were joined by our District 9820 ‘Australia Rotary Health’ (ARH) Chair and husband Jim, both members of the Rotary Club of Berwick., for our ‘Lift the Lid on Mental illness’ meeting. Viv has only been in the role for a month but is committed to promoting this outstanding organisation which grew from the foundation of ‘Red Nose Day’ in 1983, an initiative of Rotarian Ian Scott from the Rotary Club of Mornington . Since then it has distributed $41 million in grants and project assistance.
Viv shared her particular interest in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) which has been seen in diverse groups including: abused women and children, rape victims and witnesses/victims of violence, ,military veterans, police and emergency service workers and, basically, anyone at any age who has experienced significant trauma.
The long term effects of PTSD can be immense, and ARH have this as a key focus – LIFT THE LID
Viv spoke of the costs of depression and the numbers of suicides that result, But ARH is doing a lot to help. Mental Health First Aid training is an initiative that has been actively taken up by the rotary Club of Berwick. For around $250 a person can be trained and then be actively involved in identification and care of those afflicted. Viv spoke of the dramatic turnaround in suicides in her part of outer Melbourne after extensive training of many “first aid workers”. Would we hope to see trained people working, particularly with our young people in sporting clubs etc.?
Viv told us of other clubs that had chosen to initiate specific research grants which ARH has assisted and directed through its networks. This year, ‘lift The Lid’ contributions will be directed towards scholarships for research in PTDS. At our meeting, members donated a total of $250 to the appeal
Visit Australian Rotary Health to learn more.
