Educational support to school aged residents of a mental institution

Abstract

The course of life leads us into different situations. One never knows where the next bend in the road will lead. The road to happiness is long - often distant and uncertain. This, I can say through experience. The way my life has unfolded has made me aware of the distress, sorrow and pain everywhere. I have seen a beloved one succumb swiftly and unexpectedly to heartbreak and grief, caused by a series of grave adversities within her family. Bitter circumstances have led me to Mount Carmel Hospital, a place that, for a long time has been stigmatized and isolated. During one of my regular visits, I was talking to a staff member who casually mentioned the children residing at the hospital. I must admit that my initial reaction was one of amazement and disbelief. This person went on to explain that one of the half-way houses situated on the periphery of the hospital caters for the different psychiatric needs of youngsters mainly between eleven and sixteen years of age. On my way back home, as I drove along that road, past that house, I couldn't help but wonder who those children were. I couldn't help but wonder what life behind those walls was like, what stories lay hidden within those children's hearts. That's when I decided that I had to find out more about them. If I could help just a little to improve their situation I wanted to do it. That was the start of my adventure with the youngsters of the YPU (Young People's Unit) - an experience which was not simply a topic for my dissertation, but an experience which has given me a thorough insight on the different problems of childhood.