The Government of the Virgin Islands in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) will be presenting a series of webinars as part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen the mental health and community resilience in our local population.

Psychiatrist and Co-coordinator of the Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Project (MHPSS) Dr. June Samuel, explained that this is a part of BVI Government’s response to the rebuilding of the Territory post the hurricanes of 2017.  The project started in 2019 and was extended to provide response and support to the COVID pandemic and will end in June 2021.

The project, according to Dr. Samuel focuses on building the capacity of the community to respond to mental health concerns of individuals on a personal as well as at the community level.  “We aim to expand the number of professionals who can work with individuals and communities to give psychosocial support in the event of a disaster, emergency or adverse situation,” Dr. Samuel explained.

As part of the Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Project a number of trainings have been carried out and educational information through webinars disseminated to the public.  Dr. Samuel noted that during the next six months a massive educational campaign will be ongoing to include webinars, interviews, audio and video promotions and publications.

The first initiative for 2021 to be carried out will be the Resilience Webinar which is scheduled to take place on Thursday February 25 at 5:00 p.m. 

The webinar is specifically tailored for healthcare professionals, doctors, nurses, counsellors or anyone working with or around persons with stress and stress management issues. “We will be bringing you the science behind the practice.  We will be talking about new research, how to apply the tools and will also be demonstrating how these tools work. Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits will also be issued and it promises to be enlightening,” Dr. Samuel confirmed.

Persons interested in attending the webinar can register by calling Dr. June Samuel at 284-440-1591 or by registering via the following link:https://paho-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcqcO2upzgjGNA4HTnqOIKdMjfNmhOo15TH

The Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Project is funded by the Caribbean Development Bank in collaboration with the Government of the Virgin Islands and the Pan American Health Organization.