Creation of “Assistant for a Person with Mental Disorders” service initiated in Kyiv

To improve the quality of life for people with mental health issues and their relatives, and to ensure a barrier-free environment for this group of citizens, the “Psychability” Public Organization is initiating the implementation of the “Assistant for a Person with Mental Disorders” service in Kyiv.

This was discussed during the discussion at Media Center Ukraine.

During the event, participants noted that the current situation in the Kyiv community is critical regarding both the number and quality of social services for people with mental disorders. The availability of medical services for this group of citizens is also a significant issue, as confirmed by a recent study.

At the same time, the positive experience of developed countries in ensuring a barrier-free environment for people with mental disorders suggests that the introduction of the “Assistant for a Person with Mental Disorders” service could be an effective solution. This assistant is a specialist who provides comprehensive, individualized support to a person with mental disorders, guiding them on the path to recovery or improving their quality of life.

“We see that the demand for psychiatric help is growing. And as a result of the ongoing hostilities, civilians are suffering, their mental health is suffering, and the military is suffering. The demand will grow, and the number of mental disorders will grow. Unless this service is introduced, we will face a disaster in this area of ​​our life too. Therefore, within the project, we propose to involve the Department of Social Policy, a number of NGOs with relevant understanding and experience, in order to actually develop this service and set the professional standards for assistants and implement this service as soon as possible,” said Kostiantyn Zelenov, Psychiatrist of the Highest Qualification at the Center for Emergency Medical Care and Disaster Medicine in Kyiv, Member of the Board of the “Psychability” Public Organization.

Currently, the working group “Advocacy Campaign for the Creation of the ‘Assistant for a Person with Mental Disorders’ Service” is active within the project framework. Its purpose is to highlight and bring to the attention of Kyiv’s local authorities the needs of people with mental disorders on the way towards a barrier-free environment.

“We believe this project can lead to the Kyiv City Administration’s support of the proposal to create a barrier-free environment for people with mental disorders, precisely by creating such a service. We believe that the city’s special program “Care. Towards the People of Kyiv” could become the source of the support,” added Lidia Martynova, Founder and Chair of the Board of the “Psychability” Public Organization.

On Mental Health Day, the organization plans to hold a round table with the representatives of the Kyiv City State Administration, relevant departments, NGOs and the media, where a professional discussion will be held on the introduction of the service for persons with mental disorders.

The organization hopes for a successful resolution of the issue by the end of this year as well as further allocation of funds for the development of professional standards and implementation of the initiative.

Read more: https://mediacenter.org.ua/news