The Orientation Day Camp of Health in Mind – Youth Mental Health Programme (HIM Programme) 2016-2018 was successfully held on 24th September 2016 (Sat) at Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong - Wu Kwai Sha Youth Village. 116 HIM Teens from 10 participating schools and 20 Jardine Ambassadors had joined this activity.

We are honoured to have Dr T L LO, Hospital Chief Executive of Kwai Chung Hospital & Mr Kenneth Bell, Executive Committee Member of Mindset, to deliver their welcome speeches at the Opening Ceremony.

Dr. Cheryl So, Senior Clinical Psychologist of Kwai Chung Hospital shared with the Teens the vision and mission as the students’ ambassadors of Health in Mind Programme, and the responsibility to raise the awareness on mental wellbeing in school and promote social inclusion in the community. She demonstrated some of the challenges that Teens would face while planning and organizing volunteer services, and practice with the Teens different ways to tackle them. Teens also learnt how to communicate better and show their care to the person-in-recovery through role play.

Through the team building games, Teens acquired problem solving skills, and understood the importance of team work. One of the most popular games was building & launching of “trebuchet”. Teens were responsible for building up the Trebuchet by tiding the bamboo stick with strings.  After that, they would need to target the group opposite to them and launch the water bombs. This required from them the division of labour and the accountability as a team. Most of them enjoyed the game very much, especially during the hot September.

Orientation day camp is only the beginning of the HIM Programme. In the coming 2 years, teens would participate in a series of interactive workshops and volunteer services, to enhance knowledge on mental illness, to develop positive and caring attitude towards person in recovery, so as to promote mental wellness in school and to serve in the community, aiming at reduce stigmatization and enhance social inclusion.