Singaporeans dealing with mental health issues will have better support within the community. The People’s Action Party (PAP) will form a team of mental health ambassadors at its branches by next year to promote mental well-being and support the work of MPs in addressing such concerns.
This is one of the three areas the PAP Mental Health Group, launched on 5 October, will focus on in its work with the community, according to Wan Rizal, a Member of Parliament for Jalan Besar GRC and co-chair of the PAP Mental Health Group.
“We want more mental health ambassadors who understand these issues and are equipped with the necessary skills to help within the branches to support PAP MPs,” he said. “This is important because mental health issues are multi-faceted. A single meet-the-people session alone cannot solve them. This is where greater support from ambassadors will value-add to our support for residents.”
The group held its first ever community outreach and launched its community workgroup on World Mental Health Day 10 October at NTUC Centre.
Speaking to around 100 mental health groups, community advocates and individuals, Dr Wan said the group will organise bi-monthly learning journeys to better understand and support mental health advocacy groups. “Each of our community partners has a rich network and has done good work in their areas. I hope we can understand them so we can support them while expanding our network to benefit residents.”
Lastly, Dr Wan said the community workgroup will hold monthly dialogue sessions to discuss and feedback on issues they face. There is also a need for more dialogues to normalise mental health issues and create safe spaces for those with mental health conditions to share their experiences, he added.
Dr Janil encourages communities, networks, and volunteers to take the mental health agenda forward with PAP
Dr Janil said that the Party wants to bring together non-party members such as professionals in the sector, community advocates, and individuals with mental health conditions to advance mental health in Singapore.
“This is essentially a way for community groups to bring lived experience into the conversation,” he said. “If you come as an individual, we want you to have the comfort of confidentiality and privacy to share with us the lived experience, whether as a client, family member, caregiver, or someone going through or recovering from mental health challenges. We need to know what that feels like. We need to know if what we do makes a difference and where we need to do better.”
He explained that the idea of working with non-party members is like what the Party has been doing with the unions. The Party and the unions represent different organisations but share similar outlooks and values, and stand together to get things done.
“Now we want to extend this to other groups representing communities, networks, and volunteers. Please walk this journey with us and help us take this mental health agenda forward,” he said.
Edward Chia, an MP for Holland-Bukit Timah GRC and a member of the mental health group’s steering committee, said that he hopes the mental health group can increase the capacity of mental health befrienders. “We all need befrienders to walk this long journey with our residents who are in need. So, more befrienders mean more support.”
Mariam Jaafar, an MP for Sembawang GRC and member of the steering committee, said: “I hope that with the Mental Health Group and community working together, we can reduce some of the stigma around mental health so people can talk openly and come forward sooner and earlier, they can get supported before it becomes too late.”
Thirteen key community partners that have worked with the PAP for years on mental health initiatives form the community workgroups. They include Annabelle Psychology, Calm Collective Asia, Campus PSY, How Are You LLP, It All Starts Hear, Limitless, Mental ACT, Mental Health Film Festival Singapore, O’Joy, Samaritans of Singapore, Silver Ribbon Singapore, Singapore Association for Mental Health and Total Wellness Initiative Singapore. Along with the steering committee, they will refine mental health initiatives, and implement them within the community.