Under the title “Promoting Mental Health”, the Ministry of Health and Prevention’s Youth Council (MoHAP’s Youth Council) held yesterday at MoHAP headquarters a youth circle with the Community Development Authority Youth Council (CDA Youth Council).
The event comes in conjunction with the World Mental Health Day which falls on October 10 every year.
The circle was conducted in the presence of H.E. Dr. Youssif Al Serkal, Assistant Undersecretary for the Ministry’s Hospitals Sector, Dr. Sultan Sharif, Chairman of MoHAP’s Youth Council, and Huda Al Bastaki, Chairperson of the Youth Council of the Community Development Authority, doctors, psychiatrists, school and university students, and volunteers.
The participants discussed means of promoting and disseminating the best experiences and practices in the mental health field, as well as ways of spreading positive messages that can help enhance youth mental health, in view of their key role in sustainable development and future journey.
Preparing youth to lead the future
The circle also shed light on the importance of strengthening communication channels between various youth councils to adopt more creative initiatives and to enhance the role of these councils in community involvement.
Additionally, the participants underlined the importance of being well-prepared and able to shoulder responsibilities in terms of leading the society in the future and contributing to its welfare and sustainable future, in accordance with the country’s future trends.
MoHAP’s Efforts in Promoting Mental Health
Dr. Yousef Al Serkal praised the efforts being made by the Youth Councils of both MoHAP and the Community Development Authority, to discuss pressing issues facing the youth including the mental health, which was the theme of their youth circle.
Al Serkal stressed that the ministry attaches utmost attention to the youth segment when developing health and psychological programmes and is working in cooperation with the local community and concerned government entities to implement comprehensive and integrated programmes that help enhance young people’s mental health.
“Our efforts in this respect come in line with our leadership’s wise directives to support and empower young people through youth councils and help them become the shapers of the UAE’s future”, Al Serkal added
He reaffirmed the ministry's keenness to heighten awareness, provide psychological support to adolescents and young people and protect them from mental disorders including suicide. “We spare no efforts to rehabilitate and treat psychiatric patients, and we do provide specialized medical staff and appropriate treatments based on research and diagnostic surveys of common mental disorders” Al Serkal said.
Enhancing Awareness on Mental Health
Dr. Sultan Sharif, Chairman of MoHAP’s Youth Council, emphasized the importance of holding such circles to exchange experiences, knowledge, and ideas and to foster the youth-related mental health practices and its impact on their aspirations and challenges they confront.
“Our aim is to come up with creative ideas and enhance awareness among youth and adolescents about their mental health. This is done with the help of families, society, concerned government authorities and other sectors to carry out a number of holistic and integrated programs on the mental health of young people,” added Sharif.
He underscored the keenness of the council to bolster MoHAP’s initiatives and programs aiming to improve the society mental health, especially those tailored for youth.
Sharif commended the positive interaction of CDA Youth Council, emphasizing the importance of mutual cooperation and exchange of creative ideas.
He also highlighted the significance of putting forward bilateral initiatives and addressing the most important challenges facing youth and ways of confronting them in pursuance of the strategic goals of the country’s youth councils.
The Importance of Fostering Communication Channels between Youth Councils
Huda Al Bastaki, Chairperson of the Youth Council of the Community Development Authority stressed the importance of enhancing cooperating among youth councils to discus and exchange ideas and proposals, especially with regard to issues that disturb the society and affect youth and younger generation one way or another.
“Young people have a better knowledge of issues and challenges besetting them, which may seem to elder simple and do not warrant attention and therein lies the danger where young people grow up with societal or psychological challenges that may hinder expected achievements and successes.
Today, we are delighted to have participated in this workshop, which touched on one of the most important issues of personal development, “Mental Health”. We have a lot to discuss and a variety of solutions that we hope to find their way to adolescents”, Al Bastaki said.
In addition to providing specialized medical staff and appropriate treatments, preparing a statistical database, and promoting scientific research through diagnostic surveys of common mental disorders.