Abu Dhabi – UAE: Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC), managed by Cleveland Clinic, marks the World Mental Health Day 2011 on 7 and 11 October 2011, aiming to raise the public awareness on the importance of their psychological wellbeing. SKMC is part of the SEHA Health System and is owned and operated by Abu Dhabi Health Services Company PJSC (SEHA), which is responsible for the curative activities of all the public hospitals and clinics in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

The campaign is organized by the Behavioral Science Pavilion (BSP) of SKMC, a comprehensive psychiatric facility committed to providing mental health services in the UAE. The BSP has a well-developed general adult psychiatry services which represents the main bulk of its work.  In addition, it has six psychiatrist  sub-specialty units that offer psychiatric services including the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Unit, Geriatric Psychiatry Unit, Chemical Dependency Unit, Forensic Psychiatry Unit, Liaison Psychiatry Unit which offers psychiatric help to the nearby general hospitals and other medical facilities if any of their patients suffered from query psychiatric symptoms, and last but not least, the Community Psychiatry Unit which is considered the most advanced community psychiatry unit in the region.

The campaign will kick off with the opening of an educational booth in Khalidiyah Mall in Abu Dhabi from 5:00 pm until 9:00 pm on Friday, 7 October 2011. A team of social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists and nurses from the BSP will provide the visitors with the right information on mental health as well as free psychological consultations and advices. Gifts, leaflets and educational brochures will be distributed to visitors and some activities for children will be organized. 

On 11 October 2011, a half – day symposium on “Mental Health” is organized at the BSP Auditorium. The expected number of attendees is almost 110 targeting healthcare professionals in BSP, SKMC, family medicine, primary care and emergency medicine. The topic of the CME event would be extracted from slogan posted by the World Federation of Mental Health for this year which is "The Great Push: Investing in Mental Health". The presentations will be delivered by a highly qualified Psychiatrist at BSP, Dr. Abdul Nasser Arida.  The CME symposium is accredited by the Health Authority – Abu Dhabi for 1.5Continuous Education hours.

“Our physicians and healthcare professionals aim to continuously raise awareness on health amongst the public and to provide medical education to the community of physicians,” Dr. Jeff Staples, CEO of SKMC stated. “Through celebrating the World Mental Health Day and our series of public health talks on mental health throughout the year, the BSP team strives to help people in the community understand the importance of psychological wellbeing and improve the quality of their lives in addition to providing advanced psychiatry services that meets internationally recognized standards of excellence in the UAE.”

Dr. Staples thanked BSP staff for organizing the event activities and the sponsors for their cooperation and support including Khalidiyah Mall who are hosting our activities on 7 October 2011. “SKMC is committed to promoting health awareness amongst the public”, Dr. Staples said.

Dr. Maha Al Ameri, Director of BSP stated, “We are keen to mark the World Mental Health Day every year in addition to the monthly activities we have been organizing since March 2009 under our Mental Health Awareness Program. Through proper education and awareness, we envision the creation of mentally, and psychologically healthier community in Abu Dhabi where each individual has the right and the opportunity to live a full, healthier and productive life.”

Commenting on the upcoming scientific day which is scheduled on 11 October 2011, Dr. Tarek Darwish, Medical Director at the BSP said, “We believe that training other healthcare providers who are in a key position to identify and manage psychiatric problems effectively will help in decreasing the burden of psychiatric problems in the community.”