General Directorate of Preventive Medicine
Department of Mental Health and Drug Demand Reduction
Opening workshop report
Project
Training of Mental Health Professionals and National Mental Health Trainers for Afghanistan
International Psychosocial Organization (IPSO)
Date: January 30-31 2012
Place: Conference room, Institute of Public Health of Afghanistan
Time: Monday and Tuesday from 9:00 AM – 01:00 PM
Meeting chair: Dr. Bashir Ahmad Sarwari Director of Mental Health Department and Drug Demand Reduction
Members:
1. Dr. Bashir Ahmad Sarwari Director of Mental Health Department and Drug Demand Reduction
2. Inge Missmahl ,Director of IPSO
3. Dr. Sayed Azimi Consultant to the Mental Health Department and Head of Training Department, Ipso.
4. Dr. Fareshta Quedees, Manager of the Project
5. Dr. Parwiz Khesraw, Project Coordinator, Ipso
6. Sara Ayoghi Consultant of Ipso
7. Dr. Ismail ,GCMU Delegation
8. Dr. Sefatullah Habib , EU
9. Dr. Shams, Reforming Hospitals Section.
10. Dr….?
11. Dr. Huma Sherzai, Department of Mental Health
12. Dr. Masood shahi, Department of Mental Health
13. Dr. Bashir Ahmad Tasir, Department of Mental Health
14. Dr. Nematullah head of Training Department of International Psychosocial Organization Afghanistan
15. Dr. Ramzia Trainer of International Psychosocial Organization Afghanistan
16. Tahmina, International Psychosocial Organization Afghanistan
17. Tamim Ahmadi, International Psychosocial Organization Afghanistan
18. Javid Ahmadi, International Psychosocial Organization Afghanistan
19. Shafiq jalali, International Psychosocial Organization Afghanistan
20. Arifa, Administrative Employee of Mental Health Department and reduction of narcotics demand
Introduction: initially Honorable Dr. Bashir Ahmad (Sarwari) explained the Purpose and Topics of workshop for participants, included
introducing new project, Training Professional Personal and National Trainers of Mental Health for Afghanistan with coordination of
European Union and Implementer Organization (IPSO)
Meeting Agenda
No
1
First day Agenda
Opening workshop
2
3
Participants Introduction
Project Introduction
4
Tea break
5
Presenting Implementing Plan of IPSO
Madam Inge
6
Challenges and acquired guidelines from implementing Project
in 5 northern Provinces of Afghanistan
Lunch Break
Dr. Fereshta Qudees
7
1
2
Second Day Agenda
Developing Implementing Plan and Assigning duties for New
Project Activities
Lunch Break
Presented by
Dr. Bashir Ahmad
Sarwari
Participants
Madam Inge
MH Department and
IPSO
Time
09:00 AM – 9:15 AM
09:15 AM – 9:30 AM
09:30 AM – 10:30
AM
10:30 AM – 10:50
AM
10:50 AM – 11:30
AM
11:30 AM – 12:00
PM
12:00 PM – 01:00
PM
09:00 AM – 12 :00
PM
12:00 PM – 01:00
PM
Remarks
Agenda
Discussion
1.
Opening
workshop and
Introduction of
Participants
1. Dr. Bashir Ahmad Sarwari inaugurated the
workshop and spoke about Mental Health
Department activities and achievement which
is based on The National Mental Health
Strategy. He appreciated IPSOs Psychosocial
Activities in Training psychosocial counselors,
doctors and nurses for providing Mental
Health facilities in 5 Northern Province of
Afghanistan, he added that the new project
(bases on achieved results from implementing
pervious project in northern provinces) is
funded by European Union and will be
implemented by IPSO together with MH
Department. The MH Department will
coordinate the implementation of the project
on all levels.
2. All participants (MH Department members,
technical employees of IPSO organization, EU
delegation GCMU office and member of
directorate of reforming hospitals) introduced
themselves,
Project
Introduction
3. Madam Inge provided more information about
the new project (Training Mental Health
Professionals and National mental Health
Trainers for Afghanistan) she added that this
project will be implemented in 29 provinces
focusing on increasing capacity of health
Comment/ Decisions
Status
personals, the duration of this project will be
30 months and during this period IPSO
Organization is committed to achieve the
goals of this project which is training 140
professional psychosocial counselors, 90
doctors and 90 nurses from the health sector,
Implementing area of this project are BPHS
and EPHS. This project corresponds with the
Target No 1 of the National mental Health
Strategy. At the end of the project 140 NMHTs
for Mental Health (70 for medical care and 70
for psychosocial care) will be trained and
available in each province. They will be a
main source for launching further trainings for
all health staff in Afghanistan’s health
facilities. The MH Department is registered as
an associate of this project and has an
effective role in implementing this project.
She appreciated the support, cooperation and
efforts of all members of the MH Department
especially from Dr. Bashir Ahmad Sarwari.
Presenting
Implementing plan
of IPSO
Organization
Regarding the Implementing plan of this project
Madam Inge added: The technical team of IPSO
and the MH Department have joint guidelines for
implementing this project., According to these
guidelines all selected personal as professional
psychosocial counselors will be trained for 3
months in two training centers (Kabul and Heart)
and 9 months practical service in health facilities,
also doctors and nurses will be trained for 2
Discussion about process of selecting
the trainees: Precondition is that the
health facilities or clinics are able to
provide room for the mental health
services/psychosocial counseling.
Furthermore it is important to train
also the MDs and nurses in the same
health facilities that they as a team are
able to provide best quality MH care.
weeks and then as a team with professional
psychosocial counselors will provide mental
health services.
This means that the health facilities
must be able to provide separate
rooms for the counseling services, To
facilitate the process of selecting
counselors, doctors and nurses, an
official letter will be sent to all
Provincial Public Health Directorates
(PPHD) under coverage of this project,
also a letter by GCMU will be sent to
all implementing BPHS NGOs in
mention provinces and will be
informed about importance of this
project and role of ministry of public
health. A MH workshop will be held
in Kabul on March 17./18 2012 with
participation of all PPHDs and
representatives of NGOs implementing
BPHS in provinces under coverage of
this project, MH department of MoPH
and GCMU in close cooperation with
IPSO organization will require all
health services providers to cooperate
in implementing this project, all
participants on behalf of different
section of ministry of public health
expressed their support and
preparedness for cooperation in
implementing this project
Challenges and
acquired
guidelines from
implementing
project in 5
northern province
Regarding the challenges Ipso faced in
implementing the mental health project in the
Northern Provinces (the project implementation
by IPSO organization is in process) Dr. Fareshta
added: at the beginning the challenges that IPSO
Organization faced were coordinating the project
goals with provincial authorities, lack of
understanding between authorities about the
need to cooperate in order to reach the
objectives of the project, the process of selecting
the trainees for the, counselors specially females,
appointing doctors and nurses for training period
from related facilities and having counseling
rooms in hospitals.
Developing
implementing
plans and
assigning duties
for new project
activities
Regarding developing implementing plan of the
project Madam Inge added: according to the plan
in the proposal, the project activities of the first
year are classified based on monthly tasks and
responsible personals. The meantime role of MH
Department is to create coordination between
IPSO, PPHDs and NGOs implementing BPHS under
coverage of this project in province determined,
additionally MH Department will have close
cooperation with IPSO in processing official
documents as health sector in mentioned
provinces, process of selecting trainees to
become professional psychosocial counselors,
doctors and nurses working together in health
centers.
Prepared By: Dr. Khesraw Parwiz Project Coordinator, IPSO
Ahmad Sarwari
Translated By: Shafiq jalali, IPSO
Approved By: Dr. Bashir