PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC—On Monday, the Trinidad and Tobago government said it signed an agreement establishing a mental health chatline to provide accessible and effective remote mental health services tailored specifically for adolescents and youth.
In a statement, the Ministry of Health said that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed in collaboration with the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI). The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is in response to the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) rank among the top five regions globally experiencing worsening mental health conditions.
“This collaboration of the Ministry of Health, UNICEF, The UWI Mona’s Caribbean Child Development Centre, and The UWI St. Augustine Department of Behavioural Sciences is intended to improve adolescents’ access to mental health support,” the ministry said.
It said the chatline service, which will be available to young people across Trinidad and Tobago, is intended to provide accessible text-based support, referrals, and information on mental health resources and services. It will be manned by volunteers specially trained by the Department of Behavioural Studies.
“The hope is that this mental health chatline will mitigate the effect of risk factors related to stress, high levels of violence, suicide, and drug abuse, among others,” the statement said.
Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said that the venture is a “realization of a whole of society, whole of government approach to dealing with the issue of suicide.”
Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, pro-vice-chancellor and Campus Principal of the UWI St. Augustine Campus, emphasized the importance of addressing mental health among children and young adults.
The head of the Department of Behavioural Sciences, Faculty of Social Sciences, Dr. Talia Esnard, said the Department of Behavioural Sciences (DBS) remains a critical partner in this collaboration.
“As a multidisciplinary department offering programs that are all grounded in the social and behavioral realm, we remain driven by the need to advance knowledge and practices that can positively improve our people and broader society. Our involvement, by way of training and supervising volunteers to support this mental health chatline for Trinidad and Tobago, is an extension of this purpose and contribution,” said Dr. Esnard.
The Child Protection Officer (Mental Health and Psychosocial Support) at the UNICEF Office for the Eastern Caribbean Area, Mr. Bertrand Moses, reinforced UNICEF’s commitment to ensuring that every child has access to mental health services regardless of location, economic status, or any other limiting factor.
“According to the World Health Organization, 50 percent of mental health disorders begin at age 14…As such the chatline seeks to address mental health challenges at the most critical stage in a human being’s lifespan,” said Moses.
This launch follows three mental health chatline training workshops, which were held in July and attended by 67 DBS students and graduates.
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