The QualityRights initiative – Dipartimento di Salute Mentale ASUGI – WHO CC, Trieste, Italy

The QualityRights initiative – Dipartimento di Salute Mentale ASUGI – WHO CC, Trieste, Italy

The Trieste Mental Health Department (MHD), WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Mental Health (WHO CC) is supporting the implementation of the QualityRights Initiative through the promotion and implementation of QualityRights tools for improving quality of Mental Health Services in European Countries and globally in the framework of deinstitutionalization policies and practices. This constitutes one of the two activities of the workplan 2018-2022 of Trieste WHO Collaborating Centre.

 Achievements to date

  • Trieste MHD, WHO CC staff participated to the training on “Improving Quality and Human Rights in Mental Health Facilities, in Amsterdam, Athena Institute, 6-8 July 2015
  • In 2016 two staff of Trieste MHD WHO CC attended the First international Summer School on QualityRights in Cagliari
  • Two staff of Trieste MHD WHO CC attended the seminar “Training Workshop on improving Quality and Human Rights in Mental Health Facilities” held in 2017 at WHO HQ, Geneva
  • 9 staff members of Trieste MHD WHO CC have completed the Quality Rights E- training
  • Since the academic year 2016-2017 the QualityRights Initiative is part of the curricula classes of the 20 hours course known as “Psychiatric Rehabilitation Techniques” led by Trieste University – Faculty of Medicine
  • In the year 2016-2018 Trieste MHD WHO CC participated in the EU Erasmus + initiative “Empowerment College”. A group of service users, peers and operators have developed the module “My Rights, my life” with workshops and trainings. During the meetings the QualityRights Initiative was presented to the participants.

 International meetings

  • International Meeting “A community without seclusion – Territori senza segregazione”, Trieste, 15-18 December 2015. Registered for the meeting: 231 total.
    • Experiences in WHO Quality Rights / Esperienze nel programma WHO QualityRights. 
  • International Meeting “Developing the Psychiatric Hospitals in Transition Alliance in Europe”. Trieste, 15-16 December 2016. Registered for the meeting: 68 total.
    • Specific Sessions on QRs:
      • The QualityRights Programme – short presentation
      • The QualityRights Programme and the Psychiatric Hospital in Transition Alliance
  • International Meeting “The right (and opportunity) to have a (whole) life – Best practices for empowerment, self determination, community resilience, wellbeing and human rights” – Trieste 15-18 November 2017. Registered for the meeting 413 total.
    • Specific Session on QRs: Human Rights (masterclass): The WHO Quality Rights Programme
  • International Meeting “Democracy and Community Mental Health Care – Partecipazione, cittadinanza e processi di riforma in Italia e nel mondo a 40 anni dalla legge 180” – Trieste 21-23 June 2018. Registered for the meeting: 445 total.
    • Specific Session on QRs: “Training on QRs” – During the training a special focus was dedicated to the implementation of the project in Liberia
  • International Meeting “Good Practice Services: Promoting Human Rights & Recovery in Mental Health” – Trieste 23-26 September 2019. Registered for the meeting: 354 total.
    • Specific Session on QRs:
      • Introduction of Quality Rights and good practice service guidance, Michelle Funk (WHO Geneva)
      • WHO Europe Quality Rights project Melita Murko / Dan Chisholm (WHO Europe)
      • Inter-country project meeting – planning and review meeting with EURO country focal points to discuss next phase
      • QualityRights: country presentations and general discussion, Dan Chisholm/Melita Murko (WHO Europe)

Cooperation with other countries

In 2016-2018 within the framework of the activities of the WHO CC – implementation of WHO QualityRights Assessment toolkit – cooperation with:

  • The Indian NGO the Banyan in Chennai
  • Johur Bahru Psychiatric Hospital in Malaysia

 Next steps

  • The QualityRights Core Training slides are being translated into Italian for training of staff
  • The QualityRights Initiative will be part of a distance learning programme with several partners of Latin America
  • The QualityRights Initiative will be part of an internal training for new staff of Trieste MHD
  • The QualityRights Initiative will be presented in November 2021 in the national meeting of the coalition “Club no-restraint”
  • The QualityRights Initiative will be presented within the international collaboration project RING Mental Health in Palestine
  • The QualityRights Initiative will be presented within an international collaboration programme in Argentina (project lead by ONG CoperSaMM)
  • The QualityRights Initiative is part of a trans-border collaboration project with Slovenia (pending approval)
  •  

Financial support

These activities are made possible thanks to the financial support of the the Regione Autonoma Friuli Venezia Giulia.    

Social media/internet

 http://www.triestementalhealth.org/