"For the first time, we are creating a network that contributes to the promotion of mental health across sector boundaries," said Prof. Dr. Silvia Schneider, Professor of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology and Director of the FBZ, at a press event at Märkisches Gymnasium, a grammar school in Bochum-Wattenscheid, on Monday (March 4). The school's specialist staff are among the first to receive customized training courses as part of the UMH project.
Together with her team, Silvia Schneider regularly meets with representatives of the city of Bochum, school administrators and educational specialists to shape the course of the project: "This participatory approach enables us to learn from each other and strengthen what already exists." The scientific monitoring serves quality assurance and contributes to creating a learning system and thus having a lasting effect.
With its objectives, the project fits in well with Bochum's concept of the "Enabling City", explained Britta Anger, City Councillor for Youth, Social Affairs, Employment and Health. "It is particularly important to us to promote the health of Bochum's population. Wattenscheid is leading the way here as a district that is particularly committed to the well-being of children, young people and their families." The commitment of the local institutions is particularly pleasing: "They are all opening their doors and freeing up time to work on the project."
Unlike usual, the project work does not begin with a prevention program prescribed by the researchers. Instead, the researchers first want to listen to the local people: In interviews, the institutions describe their situation and formulate their wishes for support. "This approach makes it possible to develop interventions tailored to the respective institution," said Silvia Schneider. The exchange at eye level has a positive effect on the work of the professionals. "If professionals are relieved, the children also feel better. In this way, we help to prevent mental disorders from developing in the first place."
A central component of the training modules are basic skills in the area of mental health. The focus is on questions about one's own actions and experiences: Why do I keep reaching my limits? How can I influence how I feel? Building on this, the professionals receive in-depth training that is tailored to their needs - for example, on empowering children and young people through positive psychology. For example, many pupils are still struggling with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, reported Dr. Kerstin Guse-Becker, Head of Märkisches Gymnasium. "Some are showing signs of anxiety or insecurity, especially with regard to social interactions. In order to be able to offer them supportive measures, we as a college also need support."
The FBZ team continuously collects data in order to scientifically verify the effectiveness of the methods. Professionals, children and young people are asked about stress levels, individual well-being and the sustainability of the training content. According to Silvia Schneider, 45% of the professionals stated that they often or usually felt physically exhausted or drained. However, the surveys also revealed resources: "94% of those surveyed said that they often or usually receive help from their colleagues." At the same time, a high level of satisfaction with the measures implemented so far in the UMH project was also evident: more than 95% of the professionals would recommend the interventions to others; over 80% considered the content to be relevant to their own mental health or professional competence.
And so the researchers are already planning the next steps. Another group will soon be starting the project with the specialists from the Wattenscheid daycare centers. At the same time, an overall concept is being developed. "Our aim is to create a program that can be used not only in other districts of Bochum, but also in other metropolitan areas throughout Germany," said Silvia Schneider. In the long term, individual modules should also be available in digital form - even if not every intervention can be transferred one-to-one to the digital space. After all, personal interaction with local people is irreplaceable for some goals.
