PHILIPSBURG:--- Yesterday, May 14th, the Mental Health Foundation (MHF) launched a new anti-stigma campaign aimed to inform the people on mental health and the related services of MHF.
The main medium of this campaign are 4 videos to be shared via social media and at upcoming events. The first video, focused on breaking the stigma surrounding mental health, was premiered yesterday. In the coming weeks, the three additional videos will be strategically shared and inform the public about the services at MHF such as ambulant care, admissions and the Faraja (daycare) Center.
“With help of this campaign we hope that people will look at mental health and MHF differently. We want to make people feel more comfortable to discuss mental health within our community. There is no shame in admitting you are dealing with a mental health issue – and MHF can help,” Bart van der Meijden, Information and Prevention Coordinator at MHF explains.
The sponsors of this campaign included Samenwerkende Fondsen Cariben, Philipsburg Pharmacy, The Dutch Representation Office, Claude CHACHO Peterson - SMCP Member of Parliament, FWG, Rotary Club of Sint Maarten-Mid Isle & The Windward Island Bank. Sponsors and partners of the campaign were invited yesterday to preview the videos during a short presentation. “We hope that everyone will share these videos and help us share the message about fighting mental health stigma,” Van Der Meijden urged the invited guests.
“MHF’s staff and clients still deal with stigma on a regular base, making prevention and treatment more difficult. This is partly due to a lack of knowledge, but fear of social judgment plays a big role as well. MHF believes prevention is the best course of action when dealing with any health issues. We hope that this campaign impacts the public’s view on mental health in a positive way,” MHF Director Eileen Healy shared at the end of the presentation.
In addition to the videos, MHF will present their campaign through written press, radio and other channels. MHF invited the public to tune into Laser 101 every Wednesday, for the next 4 weeks, where MHF will be sharing their viewpoints during the Suppa Suppa Morning Show starting at 7:45am.
Persons can keep up to date with The Mental Health Foundation, their activities and view the newly produced videos on their Facebook page: @Mental Health Foundation Sint Maarten.
