Mental Health Awareness Day

Department of Psychology, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Women University Peshawar arranged ‘Mental Health Awareness Day’ with an aim to create awareness among the students and general community regarding the mental health issues prevailing in the society which are neither talked about nor are accepted by the society. The students from department of psychology displayed various stalls, each representing different mental and psychological issue along with its symptoms and preventive measures whereas students of Post Graduate Diploma in Clinical Psychology (PGDCP), a specialized degree under the umbrella of the host department displayed a counselling desk where the personality assessment and other tests were conducted on the spot by the students.

Poster and Model Display Competition was also held between the students regarding “Psychological Distress” in which students from BS and Masters and PGDCP came up with different ideas and models to reflect the theme given. The Vice Chancellor and Founder Iftekhar Psychiatric Hospital visited all the display stalls and assessed the work of all the students and declared the position holders.

On this day, a memorandum of understanding was also signed between SBBWUP and Iftekhar Psychiatric Hospital (IPH) by Prof. Dr. Safia Ahmed (T.I), Vice Chancellor and Dr. Mian Iftekhar, Founder IPH under which both the institutes will hold collaborative research and campaigns regarding the mental and psychological health issues and measures to cope with them. Also, both the institutes will mutually deal the relevant cases with respect to area of expertise and the students of SBBWUP will be provided internship opportunities at IPH.

The Vice Chancellor, on this occasion, expressed her thoughts regarding this day and stated that mental health is a burning issue now a days. We are so deeply indulged in the competitive race of life that we are unable to realize that how much our mental and psychological wellbeing is affected and most of all are unaware about the term “Mental Health” even. Therefore, it is a dire need to create awareness regarding these issues and all the relevant organizations/institutes must join hands together to play our role in the betterment of the society by creating awareness and providing opportunities for the general community.