Service users and staff celebrate at Derriaghy Centre

Celebrations have taken place in the Derriaghy Centre to mark the most recent achievements of some of the South Eastern Trust Service Users.
By The Newsroom
Published 19th Sep 2014, 12:39 BST

The Peer Advocacy OCN (Level 2) and the Substance Education Course were co-produced and co-delivered by service users and health professionals. The South Eastern Trust has embraced the value that ‘lived experience’ combined with clinical expertise is highly beneficial to the development of courses. At the event, speaker Martin Daley, Service User Consultant for the Belfast Trust talked of the enthusiasm of service users in actively supporting and improving mental health services.

Speakers Danielle Hughes, Dymphna Hansen, Pauline Murnin, Pauline Graham and Kieran Brogan were all involved as co-producers and facilitators of the courses. They highlighted the positive impact of the courses, noting that everyone who participated has learnt a lot and been greatly motivated to continue this style of work.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Substance Education Course gained a significant amount of interest. A manual for facilitating the course has been produced and will hopefully be able to go further afield to the Service User Network and the Recovery College. Peer Advocates are now available in the community and on psychiatric wards, covering all areas of the South Eastern Trust.