Psychiatric Sanatorium in Šternberk

www.plstbk.cz

Baerum Distric Psyciartic Center, VV HT

Charity of Olomouc
Charity of Šternberk
Municipality of Šternberk

PROJECT START anticipates new requirements in the hitherto defined plans to Reform psychiatric care in the Czech Republic. It seeks to improve and extend the existing healthcare and social services currently being offered by the Psychiatric sanatorium in Šternberk, and focuses on bridging hospitalization and out-patient care.

Project comprises of several areas. The first area is Programme Start, focusing on training self-reliance, healthy lifestyle, support of cognitive and social functioning in hospitalized patients with serious mental disorders who are having problems after release from hospital into home care. This training involves stationary co-education programme of four weeks, involving ergo-therapists, physiotherapists and psychologists. The second part of the project involves education, support and self-reliance groups, which will be provided to hospitalized and extra-mural patients and their family members and close relations. These groups will be divided according tot heir initial diagnosis (alcohol addiction/abuse, non-alcohol addiction/abuse, psychotic disorders, depression). Emphasis will be put on completing treatment, identification and modification of risk behaviour and preventive care for the patient and his family. In personal terms, these groups will involve psychologists, therapists – ex-user, doctors. During the project we intend to profile and provide qualification to peer-specialists, who will be gradually leading these groups. Peer activities will be later used for other services within the sanatorium. The third area seek to improve services by providing activation, training, motoric, hobby and social activities. These will include club activities for out-patients. These activities support treatment effects but also improve quality of life and prevent stigmatization and social exclusion of patients with mental disorders. The investment under the project includes equipping the centre so it is able to provide these activities and increase qualification of the personnel involved in providing psychiatric care in expert and practical areas. The final part of the project seeks to initiate cooperation with regional social organizations and civic associations providing individual consulting and case management focusing on mental disorder patients. In the first stage the project will provide premises for these consulting services and case management provided by the said organizations within the framework of the sanatorium and relevant areas within the project Start. In the next phase, the project will seek to initiate personal contact among the experts providing care in health and social areas, and sharing of information during seminars and development of cooperation between them, so that on local level there exists the desired connection between healthcare and social services provided to mental disorder patients. The project also plans 4 working meetings with experts from the donor state to share and exchange expertise in the area of complex psychiatric therapy. The project aims to extend therapeutic activities and maintain contact with patients released from hospital in order to provide continuous support and education during the final stages of their treatment including prevention and/or early identification of relapse, work with the family and providing easier access to related social and support services within the framework of closer cooperation between the care facility and providers of these services. Project will allow increased active involvement in the final phases of treatment both for hospitalized patients and out-patients, increase general awareness of the patient and their family members in terms of treatment and subsequent social services, facilitate transfer of the patient suffering from serious mental disorder into natural environment, improve efficiency of their adaptation and improve quality of their life. Last but not least, it will prepare the sanatorium with respect to the future involvement in the system of Mental health centres.

Approximately 660 824 EUR