Dear Friends

This newsletter, as always, carries updates on some of our current projects. HOPElineUK has now been operating for 6 months and our advisers are responding to a steady number of calls – many of them from people who are concerned that a young person they know may be at risk of suicide.  The Internet Campaign is ongoing. Our trustee, Paul Kelly recently represented us at a conference organised by the Home Office. You can read his report on page

 

In early January some of the trustees travelled to London to meet with public relations experts Alison Jee, Rosemary Vaux and Larry Rees who very kindly gave up their Saturday to discuss a possible PR strategy for PAPYRUS.  Hopefully we’re going to

PAPYRUS AGM and Members’ Meeting to Oxford. Please put the date – October 14th – in your diary. Details of the venue and accommodation will be in the July newsletter.

 

As a member of PAPYRUS you too can become involved in our work – in fact this is what makes our organisation unique. You can help us in many different ways: help us to publicise HOPElineUK, take part in the RaPSS research,  support our marathon team, organise your own fundraising event.

 

If you live near our office you may be able to help with some admin or PR work.  Similarly if you are within striking distance of Wrexham you may wish to become involved with HOPElineUK - either as a helpline adviser or as a member of the helpline management committee.

 

Tony and Denise would be more than happy to talk to you about the ways in which you can become involved.

 

Very best wishes

Anne Parry

In November I attended a conference organised by the Royal College of Psychiatrists Education and Training Centre to introduce the new NICE Clinical Guideline on Depression in Children.

 A quick reference guide to this guideline is available on www.nice.org.uk.

 

The major recommendations are:

1)  Mild to moderate depression should be treated initially by "watchful waiting", followed after 4 weeks, if necessary, by one of several psychological therapies for 2-3 months.

2) If the depression is still unresponsive, then it is classed as moderate to severe and specific psychological therapies should be offered for 2-3 months.

3) If still unresponsive after 4-6 sessions, consider additional psychological therapies and offer/consider medication in addition (Fluoxetine in 12-18 year olds, and cautiously in 5-11 year olds.)

 

The guidelines are comprehensive and offer a clearly structured programme of assessment, treatment and multi-disciplinary review.

 

The introductory address at the Conference, given by Prof. Al. Aynsley-Green (the Children's Commissioner for England), conveyed an impressive, impassioned determination to improve the lives of children and to stress that emotional and physical well-being are equally important. He focussed on

be able to implement some of their suggestions but this will largely depend on the amount of funding we have available to spend on PR. 

 

Lancashire Business Link Consultant, Roy Windley, has also carried out a preliminary diagnostic exercise in the office. He has made several recommendations and again we are looking for funding to put some of them in place. The main area of concern continues to be our inadequate office premises. A trustees’ sub-committee is looking into the possibilities. Ideally we could do with premises which, in the fullness of time, would be large enough to allow for PAPYRUS’s future growth and development.

 

Unfortunately, because of unforeseen personal circumstances, Mary Thomas has resigned as a trustee. We’re very grateful to Mary for her involvement with PAPYRUS  - particularly for her contribution in setting up HOPElineUK and we send both her and her family our best wishes.

 

This year we’re taking the

many different issues, with particular concern around bullying.

 

Great emphasis was placed at the Conference on the need for a multi-disciplinary approach to treatment by health, education and social services; this is something about which PAPYRUS has always been aware and which we endeavour to address in our work. It was rather disappointing that the people attending the Conference were largely from the medical world, but interesting and

encouraging to hear from several people to whom I spoke that they were aware of, and impressed by, our work. 

 

The other major area of discussion was the lack of availability of the

recommended therapies in many parts of the country, and the long waiting times. This problem is being addressed and hopefully the publication of these guidelines will lead to improved services. 

 

If any of our members can ascertain the scale of the problem in their area and send the information to the office, we may be able to enlist the help of our patrons and other interested M.P.s in bringing our concerns to the authorities and helping to hasten improvements.

Samaritans emotional support services are relatively well-known, but our research shows that sometimes people don’t get in touch with us because they worry that their problems aren’t significant enough, or because they don’t know what will happen when they make contact. 

 

In order to help people to understand more about what we do, we’re currently looking for people who have used our services who would be willing to share their story more widely.  This could either be in the form of written testimony, or through participation in media interviews or at events:  whatever you feel comfortable doing will be helpful to us in encouraging others in need to ask for support. 

 

If you can help, please contact Sarah Nelson, PR Manager, Samaritans, on 020 8394 8348 or email s.nelson@samaritans.org.