A clubhouse for the rehabilitation of the mentally ill has opened in Vitebsk

The club house was created on the basis of the day care departments for the elderly and disabled of the territorial center for social services of the population of the Pervomaisky district. The TCCSON allocated two rooms for this project, and also provides members of "Wings of Hope" with full access to its hobby groups, assembly hall, gym, and other resources. "The 'Club House' social rehabilitation model allows for the formation of a social environment that helps mentally ill people regain self-confidence, develop social contacts and life skills. The main principles of our club are that all its members are equal, we do not divide into administration and visitors, everyone here engages in some activity together, participates in joint decision-making and club management," explained Elena Barilo, director of the Vitebsk club house.

The club house, which officially opened today, has actually been operating in a pilot mode for two months. "Wings of Hope" currently has 14 members: the youngest is 24 years old, the oldest is 55. Elena Barilo spoke about those with whom the work is being carried out: "These people, after leaving the hospital walls following rehabilitation, returned to society, to their families, but found themselves unprepared for it. Both they and their loved ones. Some live alone – they have no support. For now, our society is stigmatized towards mentally ill people. But what is worse, they themselves do not believe in themselves. This is what we want to change."

Every day from 9 am to 5 pm, club house members gather together and jointly decide who will do what. All activities are divided into three groups: office section (working with computers, the internet, including searching for partners and sponsors, cooperation with the media, etc.), employment and training section, club house maintenance section. In a couple of months, "Wings of Hope" has found quite a few partners: young designers and artists from the "Kukhnya 33" community helped decorate the premises, programmers"Digital Workshop" is currently working on the clubhouse website. Joint events have been held with the VZAP art center and the regional branch of the YMCA, and this cooperation will continue, as will the friendship with volunteers from the Vitebsk Medical University and other caring individuals. Among them, by the way, is the famous motivational coach, businessman, founder of the charity fund for children with disabilities "Believe in Yourself" Alexey Talai, who became a special guest at the opening. The clubhouse also plans to implement the experience and methods of the social rehabilitation department of the Vitebsk Regional Clinical Center for Psychiatry and Narcology, which was discussed at the event by the head of this department.

Vitebsk is the third city in Belarus to have a rehabilitation service for people with mental health problems. Similar services have already been established in Minsk and Brest, and Grodno is next. The implementers of the "Clubhouse" project in Belarus are the public organization "Belarusian Association of Social Workers," as well as a parity social psychiatric center and the "Swallow's Nest" clubhouse from Munich, Germany, with the support of the "Aktion Mensch" foundation (Germany). The Vitebsk clubhouse project is designed for 20 months, after which this rehabilitation house will be able to continue its existence if it finds the necessary support, and ideally, receives a state social order. The "Clubhouse" model has proven its effectiveness and is therefore widely spread around the world. As noted at the opening by Elena Stanislavchik, Executive Director of the Public Association "Belarusian Association of Social Workers," this model is over 60 years old and is widespread in almost 50 countries, where over 200 clubhouses operate.

Ekaterina Knyazeva. Photos by Alexander Khitrov – BELTA.