Self, Vision, Community workshop series: Dedham

On six consecutive Wednesdays starting on May 1st to June 5th, 2024, the Savesouls Mental Health Relief program contracted by William James College, the Haitian Mental Health Network, served 30 Haitian immigrant newcomers at the Dedham shelter site through the Self, Vision, and Community workshop. Two groups of 20 and 10 individuals attended three consecutive workshops on mental health literacy, workforce development, and community integration. The workshops were presented by Savesouls’ President Patricia Mura Desert and supported by the Commonwealth Care Alliance staff who completed registration and ensured attendance.

At the beginning of each workshop, safety guidelines were established as a community agreement. Participants actively engaged in the workshop, especially on Mental Health Day. The group learned how to take care of themselves and their families as well as how to access mental health services independently. Individuals reported that the information was very useful to them as for some of them this was the first time they attended an interactive workshop on these topics. Participants had a chance to practice relaxation techniques such as breathing, de-escalating, and coping mechanisms. They also had the opportunity to engage in mock interviews, job search, and community resource mapping on days 2 and 3. Pre and post-surveys were provided on day 2 and day 3 before and after the sessions. While the first round of surveys were returned by presenters, on the last day, while passing out incentives, the last round of surveys were missed.

Overall, based on the discussion and engagement with participants through this workshop, the Savesouls team recommends a continuation of service to reach other families that wanted to register for this workshop, parenting groups to discuss healthy attachment, ESL courses tailored to education level, and other support services to facilitate the transition of these families to a more independent living.

Of the 30 individuals who participated in the workshops, 28 surveys were collected for day 1 of the series. There were some challenges with participants joining the workshop later and the logistics of lunchtime that may have prevented some from returning the surveys in a timely fashion.

Overall, all of the objectives set for the workshop series were met and participants reported a high level of satisfaction with the method of delivery and collaborative nature of the activities. Participants described in detail their satisfaction with the workshop content on the feedback portion of their surveys. To further express their gratitude, on the last day of the series they wrote a thank you to management for making this program available to them. Participants received certificates for attending this 15-hour educational training along with $90 gift cards from Target and Star Market.

Overall the participants reported that they will take better care of themselves because now they have the education to empower them. Some participants reported confusion about mental vs physical health and still believed one mattered more than the other. Positively, most participants understood how to access mental health services via local health resources. Most participants came out of the workshop with tangible plans to care for their well-being and their families.

Due to the cultural relevance and theme of the workshop, participants felt at ease to discuss personal issues pertinent to their current situations. They also explored their concerns for their families and devised plans to achieve their goals while attending to their mental health. The workshop was provided in Creole and the workbook activities were in Creole for all to participate. This was a major factor in creating a safe environment for individuals to share their stories. Some participants shared that they wished we encouraged their spouses to attend the workshop with them as the information would have addressed their family dynamics.

There were some discussions surrounding physical health, and the limitations of the food served at the hotel, as well as what the families can feed their children. Several parents reported having difficulties finding a choice of food for their young children. They were grateful that the workshop organizers served Haitian food.

Participants also reported having difficulty in the ESL classes offered as some of them are more advanced than others. They recommended screening for English level so they can all receive adequate support.

There were some lively discussions about disciplining children and the challenges with the American system and social services. Participants shared the fear of social services and school programs and hesitation on the education their children receive at school.

The families who participated in this workshop series would greatly benefit from services educating on the school system, healthy family development, and parenting groups.

Parenting group. Based on the recurring theme of disciplining children, the group would benefit from an ongoing series of 6 to 12 sessions on healthy parenting, healthy attachment, childhood development, nutrition, and child mental health. Massachusetts has launched a series certifying mental health professionals on early childhood mental health, and training such as “Circle of Security” would positively impact the families of this series.

Family conflict and community laws. Based on a few remarks when discussing family well-being and community living, the group will also benefit from domestic violence prevention training. During the community integration session, the presenter discussed local laws on public disturbances and explored healthy conflict resolution as well as community integration. However, the group would benefit from ongoing connections to such information and education.

Housing education. Families in this group can also benefit from overall information about public housing and services. Some families reported being aware of the program and services while others had a lot of concerns about their transition with their families. A monthly forum on “the next steps”, more specifically housing programs, will greatly benefit these families.

Participants reported great appreciation for the current staff at the hotel as well as the Network organizer of such a program. The logistics for this workshop series were well planned and this series was very successful.