Tuesday, December 13, 2022 – 5:39 PM
ABU DHABI, 13th December, 2020 (WAM) — The Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company “SEHA” and New York University Abu Dhabi organized a comprehensive program to acquire the skills of integrating mental health in the field of primary care, with the participation of a wide range of experts and healthcare professionals.
The program included five face-to-face, interactive workshops to help equip primary care physicians, nurses, and care coordinators with practical behavioral medicine tools and techniques. Upon successful completion of the program and undergoing final evaluation, participants received a certificate and related continuing medical education credits.
Her Excellency Hind Al Zaabi, Executive Director of the Healthcare Facilities Sector at the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, said: “In line with the department’s continuous efforts to preserve the mental and physical health of members of the Abu Dhabi community, we are pleased to support similar initiatives that will raise the level of skills of the healthcare workforce in Abu Dhabi.
For his part, the course director, licensed clinical psychologist and assistant director of counseling at the NYU Abu Dhabi Health Center, Dr. Vedrana Mladinal, said: “In line with the Department of Health’s strategic plan to meet the needs of mental health care in the emirate, the program contributes to the integration of mental health care services in crowded primary care centers. The comprehensive healthcare delivery model at NYU Abu Dhabi Health Center follows this principle by integrating specialized mental health care into student primary care.”
The program schedule includes face-to-face sessions with reading the required material, participation in real-life case discussions, and final written examination. Among the program topics are “Pandemic Mental Illness and the Need for an Integrated Model of Care,” “Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression,” “Assessment of Suicide and Self-harm Risks, and Safety Planning.” Self-care and burnout prevention for the primary care practitioner, among others.
It also includes supervision and follow-up following completing the program.
In turn, d. Ghanem Ali Al Hassani, Director of the Education Department at SEHA: “Primary care physicians are the first place that patients go to for help. Therefore, we must provide them with the necessary tools to enhance their decision-making process as soon as they notice a deterioration in the patient’s behavior.
Each session of the Mental Health Skills Improvement Program 2022, which was presented by well-known names in the sector, includes educational units that focus on the topics of highly qualified behavioral medicine, as well as interactive activities and learning using role-playing. The program will help primary care physicians obtain the necessary resources to diagnose health conditions psychological early before it causes more complications to the patient.
The Mental Health Skills Improvement Program for the year 2022 is presented by experts in this field.
His conversion to Al-Hussein / Huda Al-Kubaisi
