Occupational Therapy News OTnews May 2020 | Page 18

FEATURE COVID-19
Louise Kermode, head of services at
Jami, describes what dealing
with the impact of COVID-19 has
meant to the community mental
health charity and provides some
advice for dealing with the
impact of social isolation
Dealing with
the mental health
impact of
COVID-19
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F
ear, anxiety, panic, isolation, inequality,
financial instability, inaccessibility of
services, lack of routine, loss of meaningful
occupations and roles. These are all things
that people with illness and disability have always had
to face daily.
Supporting people to have access to the things
they need, ensuring their human rights are met,
supporting people to build a meaningful life and
connections to others are our bread and butter.
18 OTnews May 2020
At Jami, our initial response to the COVID-19
self-isolation guidance was to safeguard the
people at risk of the virus, and also the people
at risk of being isolated. Especially people who do
not have support systems in place, who are already
struggling with having their most basic needs met.
For some, our building-based services are
about having a safe place to go, a place to belong,
to connect with others and to have a hot meal.
These hubs are a place to get practical and
emotional support for day-to-day issues that can be
overwhelming for people living with distress, illness
and disability.
Shutting our doors was heart breaking, it felt like
we were taking away a lifeline. People wanted to
know how long we would be closed for, and how they
were going to cope without their support network and
structure to their day.
It was also striking how important meaningful and
purposeful occupation is for the team at Jami. To feel
unable to help, unable to support, felt destabilising at a