COMMUNITY ENGAGMENTS

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & INVOLVMENT

Community engagement and involvement refer to the active participation and commitment of individuals and groups in activities that benefit society, foster social connections, and promote collective well-being community engagement and involvement are essential for building resilient, thriving communities where everyone can grow and prosper!

Community engagement and involvement has always been an important component in all kind of research-based disciplines. Community engagement plays an important role in influencing the behavior of stakeholders in order to implement projects in social or public sector. It is based on the interaction with the target group of the research.

The community engagement activities under THEHOPE research project were conducted with the local community after the initial two PPIE meetings focusing on community mapping. The focus was to actively involve the local community for creating awareness about the project and common mental health disorders particularly psychosis. This will also help address the stigma and misconceptions prevailing in the community and improve access to the mental health services.

CEI in Local Hujra

With the support of the village council nazim in UC Hassan Ghari, a session was organized by the KMU field team in a local Hujra. Nazim was taken on board and the field team requested him for his support and time. He appreciated the initiative to engage with the general public and talk openly about the mental health issues.

The session was attended by Nazim’s entire team including Vice Nazim, NC Nazim, Kissan councilors, youth councilors along with the jirga members and the local community. The field team briefed them regarding the mental health disorders and importance of early treatment.

World Mental Health Day

An awareness session was held at the Criminology Department of the University of Peshawar on 10th October 2023. The event was organized in collaboration with the Department of Sociology and sponsored by Khyber Medical University, Peshawar. Dr. Johar Ali, the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, chaired the session, and the guest of honor was Prof. Dr. Saeed Farooq, PI THEHOPE.

During the session, the focus was on creating awareness about psychosis, its symptoms, and possible treatment options. The event also included a panel discussion on the stigma attached to psychosis, ways to reduce it, and the social impact of mental illness. Dr. Jalil presented a comprehensive overview of mental health, psychosis, and THEHOPE through a presentation. The session had a total of over 200 participants.

Shaheed Benazir Women University

Session held at Benazir Bhutto Women University which was organized by KMU in collaboration with the Department of Chemistry BBWU. The session was attended by various people including the VC BBWU, KMU faculty, BBWU faculty, and students. The moderator of the session was Ishfaq Tariq, and the guests were Dr. Abdul Jalil Khan, Dr. Zoahib, and Dr. Noor Sanauddin. Over 150 students from different departments of the university were present in the session. different presentation on mental health awareness and talk on prevailing mental health issues were discussed