St John of God Community Mental Health Services (CAMHS) at Lucena Clinic, a leading provider of mental health services for young people, proudly announces its formal accreditation as the first mental health service in Ireland to be recognized as autism-friendly by AsIAm. This prestigious recognition underscores the service’s commitment to providing all young people with inclusive, compassionate, and supportive care.
Commitment to Neuroaffirmative Practices
The accreditation, awarded by AsIAm, is a testament to the service’s ongoing dedication to fostering an environment where all those attending feel respected, understood, and valued. Community Mental Health Services is specifically a mental health service, not an autism service, but at least 50% of young people who attend may also have a co-occurring diagnosis of autism or other neurodivergence. Therefore, the service needs to show leadership in neuroaffirmative practices. This new accreditation reflects the continuing efforts to integrate best practices and promote a culture of acceptance and understanding.
Project Funding and Components
This project is funded by a €200k grant from the St John of God Foundation’s “Better Life” Programme. It encompasses six key components:
Sensory and Environmental Audit: Evaluating and adapting the physical space to be more accommodating.
Evaluation of Written Communication: Ensuring all written materials are accessible and understandable.
Consultation with Service Users: Gathering feedback from the autistic and neurodivergent community.
Staff Training: Providing education and resources to staff members.
Roadmap Report: Outlining the steps taken and future plans for maintaining and improving neurodivergent-friendly practices.
Blueprint for Other Service Settings: Creating a model that can be replicated in other clinics and services.
Collaboration with Key Organizations
In consultation with the autistic and wider neurodivergent community, this project seeks to extend the renowned St John of God hospitality to neurodivergent service users and their families and to improve the experience and engagement of all those involved in the service. The project also involved partnering with ADHD Ireland, who contributed with consultation and by delivering staff training. The National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) collaborated by reviewing communication documents to award the Plain English mark, as well as training staff. The project team at Community Mental Health Services will continue to work closely with these organizations to ensure universal accessibility best practices.
Embracing the Neurodiversity Movement
The neurodiversity movement highlights the lifelong and positive aspects of naturally occurring cognitive ‘differences’ such as creativity and passions, as opposed to a focus on developmental deficits. To date, clinics and services have generally been developed and operated with the neurotypical community in mind, and this project is specifically making CAMHS more inclusive.
Leadership and Advocacy
Fiona O’Donnell, Project Coordinator at St John of God Community Mental Health Services, stated, “Achieving this accreditation is a significant milestone for our clinic and a great endorsement of the team effort that has been put into this project over the past 12 months. Most importantly, this award reflects our commitment to providing high-quality, compassionate care to all individuals, regardless of any neurocognitive differences. We are dedicated to creating a hospitable, supportive environment where everyone feels welcomed and included. This accreditation validates our efforts and inspires us to continue advocating for neuroaffirmative practice.”
Future Goals and Ongoing Commitment
Adam Harris, founder and CEO of AsIAm, commented, “Neurodivergent people often face barriers to healthcare engagement due to communication differences, sensory aversions, and a lack of understanding and acceptance of their unique needs. This important project, with the St John of God team at Lucena Clinic, is very welcome. Recognizing the challenges, the project aims to reduce anxiety and improve experiences for autistic and neurodivergent children and young people by creating a welcoming and inclusive environment within the service. I very much hope the great work underway can act as a template for many other organizations in the mental health space and beyond, going forward.”
As part of the initial stage of this project over the past 12 months, important first steps have been taken to implement several recommended universal accessibility measures, guided by a comprehensive sensory audit conducted by AsIAm. A new website will be launched in the coming months. This project is an ongoing journey, and the St John of God Community Mental Health Services CAMHS team at Lucena Clinic will continue to work towards achieving a set of additional medium and long-term goals over an envisaged five-year period.
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