THE founders of a charity that helps people with mental health problems in Zanzibar have seen first hand how the money they raise helps people after a two-week trip.

Ruth Jennison, who lives in Borth and works in Bronglais Hospital’s Enlli Ward, and Mike Greenwood, a former manager and clinician in mental health in north Wales who lives in Upper Corris, founded ZAMHS in 2014 to provide equipment and support for people with mental health issues in Zanzibar.

Since then Ruth and Mike have made several visits to Zanzibar to see how the money they have raised has helped out, with the latest trip taking place in September.

During their visit, the duo met with traditional healers, a charity that is supported by ZAMHS and met some of the patients who have been helped, as well as taking part in a special trip to the beach with patients and staff from Kidongo Chekundu Hospital, the main psychiatric hospital in Zanzibar.

Ruth said: “We spent two weeks working with mental health services and charity organisations on the tropical island to monitor the effectiveness of their previous activities, and to develop future plans for improving services for people with mental health problems and neurological disorders.

“Although Zanzibar is a tropical paradise and popular tourist destination, many people on the island live on less than a pound a day, and for people with serious mental illnesses this means that they cannot afford the bus fare to attend the main hospital on the island, and cannot afford medication.

“ZAMHS pays for a motorbike so that the mental health staff can run clinics in the rural parts of the island, and sends money every month for fuel for the motorbike and for medication.

“Without the intervention of ZAMHS many patients would simply go without treatment or medication.

“Many children cannot get to school due to ongoing seizures, and people suffering from depression or other problems do not get the help they need.

“This is why the community clinics supported by ZAMHS are vitally important.”

As part of their work with ZAMHS, Ruth and Mike visited traditional healers to see how they could help refer people with mental health issues and what issues they could help to treat, and also visited the Zanzibar Psychiatric Association, a local charity supported by ZAMHS, which helps provide medication and helps people set up small businesses to help support themselves and their families.

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