To mark Suicide Prevention Week (5-11 September), Clydesdale health improvement team – in partnership with South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture, Healthy Valleys, Lanark Development Trust, Lanarkshire Association for Mental Health and Clydesdale’s community mental health team – held two events with the aim of promoting and supporting Suicide Prevention Week and having meaningful conversations about good mental health and suicide prevention.
The first event, held on 8 September, included a Lanark Lifestyles Centre walk led by Healthy Valleys project worker Gail McAra and, on 9 September, a walk around Castlebank Park, Lanark led by the Castlebank horticultural centre’s educational gardener, Stuart Ritchie. Mr Ritchie showed the group around the park and spoke about the positive impacts of being outdoors on health and well-being.
Quotes from some of the participants when asked what they enjoyed most about the events included:
- ‘Finding out about services and information’;
- ‘Great to hear different experiences’;
- ‘Meeting new people, being outdoors and having an open, honest conversation’.
Participants were issued with information leaflets on mental health well-being and the support available, as well as pedometers, pens, key chains and water bottles.
David Inglis, health improvement senior, Clydesdale locality, said: “Hosting an event to raise awareness of suicide prevention was a first for Clydesdale locality. It was a good opportunity for me to bring some of our locality health teams and locality organisations together, to work in collaboration and support promoting this important topic.
“The event itself was a good networking opportunity for staff and local people and we’re keen to make this an annual event. As a result of good conversations, constructive and positive feedback, and strengthened relationships from both days, we’re all keen to come back together and look at the next steps, as we focus our energies on promoting positive mental health and suicide prevention in Clydesdale.”
Anila Ansari, health improvement practitioner, said: “It was a great opportunity to meet members of the public and colleagues from various Clydesdale-based organisations and have a meaningful conversation about a topic some people feel uncomfortable to talk about. The chats with my walking buddies also highlighted the need to do more work in addressing the stigma around mental health. We will definitely work with partners to make this an annual event.”
A special thank you goes to Aldi, Carluke; Tesco, Lanark and Tunnocks, Uddingston who all kindly donated healthy foods and water for the events.
