On March 28, the Zanmi Lasante Mental Health Department closed the second year of the project run in partnership with the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) at a meeting held at the Centre National de Formation in Hinche.
This activity marks a milestone in work that has been underway for two years in the commune’s schools, with the specific aim of giving teachers concrete tools for recognizing signs of distress in children and young people, and structuring response mechanisms adapted to the school setting.
In an environment where students are faced with multiple pressures, school remains one of the few structured spaces where these difficulties can be observed and taken into account, placing teachers in the front line to identify worrying situations before they escalate.
The project was implemented in three Hinche schools, including École Saint Martin de Porès, Lycée Charlemagne Péralte and Fondation Chrétienne, where educational teams were supported throughout the year in integrating mental health into their daily practice.
During this second year, 64 teachers were trained to identify signs of mental health disorders in students, as well as referral mechanisms to appropriate services, with an approach centered on concrete situations encountered in the school environment rather than abstract theoretical content.
The closing day showcased this work through individual presentations, exchanges around participants’ expectations, games designed to facilitate expression, as well as a workshop dedicated to stress management, while students took part in performances testifying to their gradual appropriation of the notions addressed.
The effects of this work are already being felt in the schools concerned, where teachers now have more precise benchmarks for recognizing behavior requiring special attention, and are able to refer pupils to care structures when necessary.
On the students’ side, the activities carried out have helped to improve their ability to express their emotions in a supervised setting, opening up a space for dialogue that didn’t exist before and which remains dependent on regular support to sustain over time.
The continuation of this work involves extending the project to other schools in the region, maintaining regular follow-up with teachers who have already been trained, reinforcing referral mechanisms for students in difficulty, as well as continuing awareness-raising activities with students in order to embed these practices over time.
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