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Remarks at the official opening of the GROW Conference “GROWing Towards Recovery – re-enchantment with life”

11th January 2013

Dia dhíbh a chairde. Go rabh maith agaibh as an gcuireadh agus as an bhfáilte.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Táim fíorshásta a bheith in bhur gcuideachta anseo ar maidin chun bhur gComhdháil a oscailt. Ba mhaith liom, go háirithe, buíochas a ghlacadh le duine de m’iarscoláirí fadó, Dochtúir Mike Watts, as an gcuireadh seo agus libh go léir as an bhfáilte chroíúil sin.

[I am delighted to be here with you all this morning to officially open your Conference.

I would particularly like to thank one of my past pupils from many years ago, Dr. Mike Watts for this invitation and all of you for that very generous welcome.]

I also wish to thank the Provost of Trinity College Dublin, Dr. Patrick Prendergast, for hosting this important Conference and for his kind words of introduction.

I have spoken on many occasions during my Presidency of the importance of building together an active, inclusive citizenship; based on participation, equality and respect for all.

One of the most inspiring phrases written by the great sociologist Raymond Williams states that ‘Once the inevitabilities are challenged, we have begun to gather our resources for a journey of hope.’ This is so relevant to the issues being discussed in mental health. For too many years we, as a society, failed to challenge the perceived assumptions associated with mental illness; failed to provide an opportunity to those with serious mental illness to proceed down a road of hope, preferring to treat them in long stay psychiatric institutions; hidden from relatives and communities; passive participants in their treatment process.

Our approach to mental health in the 21st century means that Irish people have an opportunity to understand to some greater extent, what it means to be mentally healthy and are able to recognise, as they do with heart disease or cancer or any other serious illness, the earliest signs of mental ill health. But we are some distance from this as a general position.

We all want to see an Ireland where Irish people feel comfortable to share their experiences of mental ill health with those close to them and be able to ask for help if they need it. However, far too many people with mental health problems suffer in silence, and report that negative attitudes, stigma, and discrimination remain very serious impediments to their inclusion and meaningful participation in society.

Our approach to mental health care has begun to change if ever so slowly, over the past twenty five years or so and today we, like so many other countries, are beginning to recognise that recovery from mental ill health can indeed be a journey of trust and aspiration; a journey that may commence in great uncertainty and fear but can, with appropriate supports, reinvigorate the sense of purpose and meaning for the individual.

We still have many challenges to overcome if we are to realise a truly citizen centred health service. As a sociologist I have been struck by the near total neglect of the discourse issues – issues such as the use of language in the citizen’s interaction with services; the use of language in the interaction of professionals with families; among fellow professionals with each other and with members of communities. These interactions ask us to consider, for example, the forms of authoritarianism that have made their way into professional practice and discourse between professionals and between them and patients and their families. This issue is dealt with admirably by Professor Kathleen Lynch, John Beker and Maureen Lyons in their recent book Affective Equality – Love Care and Justice.

As a sociologist, and a citizen, I have been concerned too, as to how many of our encounters between medical professionals, patients and their families are conducted in an atmosphere of asserting hierarchy and status. The unedifying debate as to who can affect the most certainty in circumstances that are full of uncertainty comes to mind.

Today you have gathered to discuss the processes involved in recovery from mental illness and I know that much of your focus will be on the recovery model in mental health. This model, which has been unequivocally accepted as the guiding principle of the mental health policies of a number of countries, is a model which truly embodies that spirit of citizenship; a spirit which stands for the right of every citizen to participate in society with the opportunity to develop their personal and social selves in conditions of freedom, justice and equality.

In order to embrace this concept, however, recovery must be seen as a very real possibility where adequate social supports are available to enable those affected by mental illness to take and recover their place in the community and that very important sense of belonging. This can only be achieved if we, as citizens, fully recognise our responsibility to put in place the supports required to allow those recovering from mental illness to lead full and independent lives; this includes access to opportunities for training and employment and to participate within their communities at every level.

We have recently, in this country, been forced to confront our fragility and vulnerability as we emerge from a period of a speculative property based economic growth; debt fuelled growth that has endangered the fabric of our society, propelling it towards a self interested individualism and a de-peopled economic system that undermines solidarity, a solidarity which is essential for a fair and inclusive society. We have been called upon to re-learn the importance of community and of developing a citizenship based on true solidarity as we seek to create a wiser and better version of our Irishness.

It is a time when we must challenge the inevitabilities; to recognise, as we begin to emerge from the darkness that we have an opportunity to effect positive change and to work together to ensure that individuals and groups within our society are given the support they need to fully contribute to that society and to make a difference.

I have been greatly heartened, during my time as President to have witnessed the enormous commitment that exists, right across the country, to realising that concept of an inclusive society; a society that regards citizenship as being built on equality, as valuing solidarity and as being rooted in caring. It has been truly inspirational to realise that we are still a country with many, many active participants willing and anxious to build a vibrant citizenship that respects the values of solidarity, community, justice and equality.

Experts say that one in four of us will experience a mental health problem in our lifetime, an increase linked, it seems, to how we live our lives in the 21st century. But numbers alone do not measure the suffering, the isolation and the stifling of human potential that mental health problems can cause. Too many families everyday are forced to confront the initial helplessness when a loved one at any age becomes mentally unwell. For those families and those individuals it is critical that the appropriate range of multidisciplinary community based services be available and responsive to the holistic needs of those seeking support, and to those too, who, while not seeking support, need it to be made available.

If we are to continue to challenge the inevitabilities, the promotion and undertaking of research will always be a central aim rather than an optional extra in mental health services. It remains vital in contributing to new knowledge needed to improve health outcomes. Research, too, if sufficiently broadly structured helps recognise and reduce the impact of inequalities in life and living.

GROW, as a provider of support and encouragement to many of the most vulnerable people in society, has been to the forefront in bringing about much positive change for those experiencing mental ill health and I would like to commend all its members, past and present, for their commitment in encouraging people to take a lead in their recovery and to develop to their full potential.

The recovery journey is a very personal and individual one; a journey where the supports and services needed may vary from person to person. However, as we encounter the stories of the many people who have successfully battled mental illness it is the importance of empowerment, of achieving a sense of ownership of the circumstances of their illness that is the common thread that runs through such moving and brave narratives; narratives that can do so much to help us as we continue to work to challenge the exclusion still so often associated with mental illness.

They are also narratives that truly highlight how genuine recovery must focus on supporting and building on the resilience of people recovering from mental illness as opposed to simply treating their symptoms. It is a focus in which our service deliverers must move from a dependency model of care to one of empowerment; of allowing service users the authority to manage their recovery and to move forward in a way which will allow them to reach their potential, to realise all of their possibilities.

It is a focus which must also recognise that recovery is about discovering an inner strength which will lead to the opening of a new chapter of a person’s personal narrative – one that recognises and authenticates the experience of mental illness as a part of that narrative; a part that provides opportunities for positive change and for the prospect of the true fulfilment of an individual’s capacities at both an ethical and a creative level.

Ar deireadh, ba mhaith liom gach rath a ghuí ar an gcomhdháil agaibh. Tá muinín agam go mbainfidh go leor daoine in Éirinn tairbhe mhór as na páipéir spreagúla atá le teacht agus as an dioscúrsa dúshlánach anseo inniu, daoine gairmiúla, mic léinn, teaghlaigh agus go háirithe iad siúd a raibh sé de riachtanas orthu leas a bhaint as seirbhísí tacaíochta meabhairshláinte ina measc.

[In conclusion, I would like to wish you a successful conference. I am confident that many people in Ireland, including professionals, students, families and perhaps most importantly, those that have experienced the need for mental health supports and services, will greatly benefit from the stimulating papers to come and the challenging discourse here today.]

Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.