The Brothers of St John of God have last year November 2022 celebrated the five-year anniversary of Haus Bung in Papua New Guinea, and caregivers Jenny Tait-Robertson and Anthea Ramos were present for the celebration.
Haus Bung, located in Madang on Papua New Guinea’s (PNG’s) north coast, is the nation’s first clubhouse for people experiencing mental health issues and was established by St John of God International Health (SJGIH) on behalf of the Brothers of St John of God.
Education Program Coordinator and PNG Project Officer Jenny Tait-Robertson has worked closely with the Haus Bung team over the past five years and says that the service has been hugely successful for its members and has benefitted the wider community.
“One of our biggest achievements is the change we’ve seen in the local community in their attitude towards mental health issues,” Ms Tait Robertson said.
“We’ve worked hard to help address and reduce the stigma and discrimination that people experiencing mental health issues frequently face,” she said.
Ms Tait-Robertson continued by explaining that SJGIH have achieved this by bringing families along on the journey and helping them to understand what’s going on without fear and prejudice.
“It’s been incredible to see the impact of the service not only on the members, but their families too,” Ms Tait-Robertson said.
“Some family members of the men and women at Haus Bung spoke at the anniversary event about the positive impact of the service and the changes they’ve seen in their loved ones,” she said.
The service first saw four members attending upon its opening in 2017, but that number has since increased to some 25 people a day, four days a week.
Haus Bung, using the Clubhouse International model, works to provide opportunities for all members to be involved in the daily work and activities of the centre with members and staff working side by side.
Members have the opportunity to develop skills such as cooking, cleaning, maintenance, administration skills, health and hygiene and more recently education and employment support has been introduced.
“We have now supported five members to gain employment as part of the service, and plan to expand this support,” Ms Tait Robertson said.
“One young man was so proud of himself for gaining employment that he used his first pay to buy groceries for his family.
“Being able to make this contribution was extremely meaningful for him and shows how much confidence he has gained through Haus Bung.”
For more information about Haus Bung, go to Papua New Guinea (sjog.org.au)