KINGSTON, Jamaica. Thursday, February 29, 2024: The Ministry of Health & Wellness has showcased a new toolkit, intended to add to the available mental wellness resources for young people in schools islandwide and from which adults can also benefit.
The toolkit is a four-part video series looking at the dimensions of health, notably the mental, the physical, the spiritual, and the social. It features personalities and professionals such as clinical psychologist, Dr. Kai Morgan; award-winning chef and author, Noel Cunningham; development specialist, Carla Moore; and Pastor Christopher Morgan of Go for God Family Church.
The videos, which provide viewers with insight into each dimension of health and exposes them to tactics they can use to preserve their own wellness, also features Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, the Minister of Health & Wellness; and Senator Dr. Saphire Longmore, a psychiatrist and consultant who has been supporting the national mental wellness programme.
The videos, which will be made publicly available on the Ministry’s YouTube channel, were showcased at the Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation in Kingston on Wednesday (February 28) during a Wellness Check-In with the institution.
The visit was the latest in a series of visits conducted at schools islandwide, as part of the ongoing #DoYourShare mental wellness campaign and in line with the School Mental Health Literacy Programme.
It saw the participation of Minister Tufton; the Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Hon. Olivia “Babsy” Grange, in addition to members of the national mental health team who provided words of inspiration for the teens while also sharing tips and information about available mental wellness resources.
Those resources include the Mental Health & Suicide Prevention Helpline, 888-NEW-LIFE (888-639-5433) and the U-Matter Chatline that can be accessed by texting the word SUPPORT to 876-838-4897.
The visit also saw the donation and unveiling of a ‘Wellness Bench’, a symbol for the creation and maintenance of safe spaces for persons to share or otherwise access resources in support of their mental wellness.