scholarly journals Diaspora and peer support working: benefits of and challenges for the Butabika–East London Link

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (01) ◽  
pp. 10-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dave Baillie ◽  
Mariam Aligawesa ◽  
Harriet Birabwa-Oketcho ◽  
Cerdic Hall ◽  
David Kyaligonza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Peer Support ◽  
International Health ◽  
User Involvement ◽  
Child And Adolescent Psychiatry ◽  
Support Worker ◽  
Violence Reduction ◽  
Health Partnership ◽  
Set Up ◽  
The Uk ◽  
International Health Partnership

The International Health Partnership (‘the Link’) between the East London NHS Foundation Trust and Butabika Hospital in Uganda was set up in 2005. It has facilitated staff exchanges and set up many workstreams (e.g. in child and adolescent psychiatry, nursing and psychology) and projects (e.g. a peer support worker project and a violence reduction programme). The Link has been collaborative and mutually beneficial. The authors describe benefits and challenges at individual and organisational levels. Notably, the Link has achieved a commitment to service user involvement and an increasingly central involvement of the Ugandan diaspora working in mental health in the UK.

scholarly journals (Re)imagining the ‘Backstreet’: Anti-abortion Campaigning against Decriminalisation in the UK

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pam Lowe
Keyword(s):  
Public Support ◽  
International Health ◽  
Moral Regulation ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Parliamentary Debate ◽  
Serious Injury ◽  
Set Up ◽  
The Uk

The risk of death or serious injury from ‘backstreet abortions’ was an important narrative in the 20th century campaign to liberalise abortion in the UK. Since then, clinical developments have reduced the overall health risks of abortion, and international health organisations have been set up to provide cross-border, medically safe abortions to places where it is unlawful, offering advice and, where possible, supplying abortion pills. These changes mean that pro-choice campaigns in Europe have often moved away from the risks of ‘backstreet abortions’ as a central narrative when campaigning for abortion liberalisation. In contrast, in the UK, anti-abortion activists are increasingly using ideas about ‘backstreet abortions’ to resist further liberalisation. These claims can be seen to fit within a broader shift from morals to risk within moral regulation campaigns and build on anti-abortion messages framed as being ‘pro-women’, with anti-abortion activists claiming to be the ‘savers’ of women. Using a parliamentary debate as a case study, this article will illustrate these trends and show how the ‘backstreet’ metaphor within anti-abortion campaigns builds on three interconnected themes of ‘abortion-as-harmful’, ‘abortion industry’, and ‘abortion culture’. This article will argue that the anti-abortion movement’s adoption of risk-based narratives contains unresolved contradictions due to the underlying moral basis of their position. These are exacerbated by the need, in this case, to defend legislation that they fundamentally disagree with. Moreover, their attempts to construct identifiable ‘harms’ and vulnerable ‘victims’, which are components of moral regulation campaigns, are unlikely to be convincing in the context of widespread public support for abortion.

The International Health Partnership

The Lancet ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 370 (9590) ◽  
pp. 803-804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas Alexander
Keyword(s):  
International Health ◽  
Health Partnership ◽  
International Health Partnership

Peer support – the what, why, who, how and now

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 314-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Beales ◽  
Johanna Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Peer Support ◽  
Service User ◽  
User Involvement ◽  
Health Department ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
Health Strategy ◽  
Mental Health Department ◽  
The Uk

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to outline what peer support is, covering its history, variations and benefits, then goes on to discuss what the challenges have been to authenticity and what the future holds for peer support. Design/methodology/approach – The authors argue for the necessity of service user leadership in peer support based on both the Service User Involvement Directorate’s (SUID’s) experience and UK-wide learning. Findings – Peer support brings wellbeing and confidence benefits both to the supporter and the supported. However, the lack of understanding of what peer support is, the current climate of austerity and over-professionalisation can threaten the transformational power of genuine peer support. Research limitations/implications – Peer support is always evolving, and there are areas like the criminal justice service and secure services where more work needs to be done. Practical implications – Commissioners/funders of mental health services should recognise the value of peer support and its potential for better wellbeing outcomes, while understanding the necessity of service user leadership to maximise its beneficial potential. Originality/value – The paper looks at peer support at the point in time a decade after the formation of the SUID at Together and four years since the UK mental health strategy No Health Without Mental Health (Department of Health, 2011) and explores the challenges faced at a time when the value of peer support is generally accepted in legislation.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document