Mental health information now available in the Ukrainian language

Information and articles on a range of mental health topics have been translated into the Ukrainian language to support the community from the Ukraine in Ireland.

Here at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS), a number of blogs and articles by our team of mental health professionals are now available. You can find out more and download the articles below.

Пропонуємо до вашої уваги переклад на українську  актуальних статей щодо психічного здоров’я від клініки St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS). Цей переклад став можливим завдяки благодійній програмі психологічної освіти для українських переселенців, розпочатої в 2022 році.

Ці  статті написані провідними ірландськими клініцистами, вони охоплюють деякі з найбільш поширених проблем психічного здоров’я, такі як: тривожні, депресивні розлади, біполярний розлад та розлади харчування.

Ми сподіваємося, що ці матеріали будуть корисними як для українських переселенців
в Ірландії, так і для волонтерів і фахівців із психічного здоров’я, які працюють з українськими переселенцями.

At SPMHS, an important part of our advocacy work involves supporting greater responsiveness to the mental health needs of diverse groups.

Through our programme of philanthropic sponsorship, we collaborate with a number of external partners and organisations, whose objectives are strategically aligned with our own.

In 2022, Kateryna Chudnenko, a Ukrainian psychologist and translator volunteering with Ukrainian refugees in Ireland, made a direct request to our Psychology Department for support of the Ukrainian community in Ireland, particularly those arriving to the country for the first time in the wake of the war in Ukraine. Since then, we have been working alongside Kateryna to provide support to Ukrainian refugees, volunteers and mental health professionals working with refugees from Ukraine in Ireland.

As part of this, we ran a number of mental health and psychoeducation webinars for the Ukrainian community in 2022. These were presented by diverse members of the SPMHS team, with an interpreter providing live translations into the Ukrainian language. Topics covered included Compassion-Focused Therapy for Eating Disorders and multi-family therapy for anorexia. Individual sessions with SPMHS dieticians for Ukrainian teenagers were also provided.

During 2023, we will continue to deliver a number of psychoeducation and information sessions online. We will also share additional resources through our website to provide mental health information to the Ukrainian community in Ireland.

As part of this, several articles and blogs by a range of mental health professionals from the SPMHS team have been translated into Ukrainian, and are now available for download and sharing.

These articles cover some of the key symptoms and supports for a number of mental health difficulties, including anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression and eating disorders.

The articles also explore and provide guidance around a range of mental health topics, such as:

• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Self-harm
• How to talk to someone going through a mental health difficulty
• Young people’s mental health.

Tamara Nolan, our Director of Communications and Advocacy, says:

“As an organisation, SPMHS is driven by a human rights approach. Our advocacy strategy commits us to supporting greater responsiveness to the mental health needs of diverse groups. Ever since Kateryna reached out to us, it has meant a lot to be able to play our part in this. We are very grateful to the many staff from across SPMHS who have volunteered their time and expertise to provide support to the Ukrainian community in Ireland.”

Our Director of Psychology, Adjunct Professor Clodagh Dowling, says:

“The challenges that people from the Ukraine have experienced, both in the Ukraine and in arriving and settling in Ireland, have been difficult."

Having information about how, as human beings, we react to traumatic events can help normalise our responses. This understanding can reduce fear and empower us in the face of adversity. We hope that the translation of mental health information into Ukrainian is of help and guidance to people from the Ukraine in Ireland at this time.”