feedback report national anxiety disorders awareness week
7 - 13 October 2002, South Africa

The Mental Health Information Centre of South Africa (MHIC) celebrated its 6th annual National Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week (NADAW) during the week surrounding World Mental Health Day. As with previous NADAW campaigns, our activities followed the theme of World Mental Health Day as declared by the World Federation for Mental Health. This year, our focus was thus on "the effects of trauma and violence on children and adolescents".

We are pleased to announce that the 2002 NADAW campaign was a huge success. Thank you to Parke-Med/Pfizer, our longstanding financial supporter and partner with NADAW since its inception in 1997. We initially set as our aim for 2002 to address professional education in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), particularly regarding children and adolescents. Also, to increase public understanding of mental illness and to take steps to combat psychiatry stigma. It was accepted that collaboration with the various mental health roleplayers in our country would be essential to ensure national impact. We are pleased to report that all our objectives were successfully achieved. Activities for the week included:

Professional education and anti-stigma
The MHIC and Parke-Med/Pfizer hosted Continuing Professional Education sessions in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town. The DASG helped to announce and run the Johannesburg session. A mixed audience of mostly general practitioners, psychologists and trauma workers, attended all 3 CPD activities. Speakers included Dr Soraya Seedat of the MRC Unit on Anxiety Disorders and Dr Franco Colin, well-known South African psychiatrist and educational speaker. Topics covered the diagnosis and management of posttraumatic stress disorder, with an emphasis on primary care intervention.

We also took part in the "Mental Health and the Family" Seminar hosted by Stikland Hospital. This seminar took place on World Mental Health Day, 10 October, and was aimed at mental and general health professionals. We are honoured to have presented at this event which addressed issues such as family management and traumatised children, marital counselling and mourning.

The MHIC was approached to address undergraduate students from the Health Sciences Faculty, University of Stellenbosch. This huge group of mixed students from backgrounds including physiotherapy, occupational therapy and nursing were informed about the role of attitudes and stigma in the deinstitutionalisation of psychiatric patients.

Lay awareness and anti-stigma
A series of educational brochures covering the major anxiety disorders and comorbid conditions were printed and distributed to doctors rooms, pharmacies and primary care centres across South Africa. NADAW posters were also distributed nationwide at prominent public and health venues.

We participated in numerous local and national radio interviews, including Radio Tygerberg, CCfm, and Radio Sonder Grense. Interviews included discussion of the World Mental Health Day theme, stigma of mental illness, NADAW and the role of communities in promoting mental health.

Press releases covering the various aspects of NADAW were sent to local and national radio stations, newspapers, magazines and electronic media sources. This contributed to stories in the popular printed (COSMO, FairLady, Die Burger, etc.) and electronic (SAHealthInfo, Heath24) media.

The MHIC Call Centre experienced an increase in calls taken during this period. We received calls from all over the country, with most callers (47%) requesting information on our various NADAW educational and media activities. Our website also generated much interest, with over 12 000 successful hits recorded in the month surrounding NADAW.

Media awards and anti-stigma
The fifth annual MHIC Mental Health Media Awards were this year, for the first time, a collaborative event. During September a national panel nominated and voted for journalists in three categories, nl. (1) Newspaper, (2) Magazine; and (3) Radio/TV/Internet. The panel constituted representatives from the Dept of Health: Mental Health Programmes, the MHIC, the MRC Unit on Anxiety and Stress Disorders, the SA Federation for Mental Health, the SA Society of Psychiatrists (SASOP), and various support and advocacy groups. Nominees were journalists who had played a significant role the past 12 months in promoting mental health. This included helping to raise public awareness and understanding of mental illness by reporting in a responsible and sensitive manner and ultimately helping to combat the stigma that is attached to these conditions.

An award was presented in each category as well as to an overall winner for 2002. This took place during a special Mental Health Media Awards Ceremony on the eve of World Mental Health Day at the V & A Waterfront, Cape Town. Prof. Margaret Nair, representing SASOP (Durban) and the Anti-stigma Initiative was the keynote speaker at this prestigious event. Prof. Nair highlighted the role of the media in promoting mental health and tackling psychiatry stigma. Ms. Jackie Stewart, from the Trauma Centre (Cape Town), gave an impassioned plea to recognise and act on the impact of violence and trauma on children and adolescents. The media, members of the national panel, delegates from support and advocacy groups, and other mental health roleplayers attended the Ceremony. Orange ribbons, symbolising the campaign against psychiatry stigma, were distributed and on display at this function. Art works from the Dept of Health Children's Art Competition were also exhibited at the Media Awards.

Conclusion
The success of 2002 NADAW is due to the hard work of a large group of people and organisations. We are especially pleased at being able to maintain and forge new alliances in our quest to raise professional and public awareness of mental illness and to address the stigma associated with these conditions. We would like to thank our many partners in this campaign whose time, efforts and support helped to achieve our joint successes this year. Parke-Med/Pfizer; the Dept of Health: Mental Health Programmes; the Depression & Anxiety Support Group of SA (DASG); the MRC Unit on Anxiety & Stress Disorders; the SA Federation for Mental Health; the SA Society of Psychiatrists, the Anti-stigma Initiative and the various support & advocacy groups in South Africa all played a vital role. We look forward to collaborating with all mental health roleplayers in South Africa, and indeed globally, to ultimately improve the condition and care of mental health in South Africa.

Mental Health Information Centre Of South Africa
MHIC, PO Box 19063, Tygerberg 7505, South Africa
Tel: +27 21 938 9229 Fax: +27 21 933 5790
E-mail: mhic@sun.ac.za
Web: http://www.mentalhealthsa.co.za