Jami - NSPA

Jami is the Jewish community’s mental health service supporting people (aged 16 and over) who experience mental illness as well as being outward facing to the community with education, training and social enterprise initiatives. Our vision is to transform the landscape in the community by enabling us to be better equipped to support each other’s mental health and help prevent suicide. Jami delivers services through community hubs and bespoke recovery support plans. We have a team of multi-disciplinary professionals and trainers working with peer led services to provide recovery orientated support and education.

How does your organisation contribute to preventing suicide and supporting those affected by it?

– Provides training in Mental Health First Aid to schools, synagogues, other faith communities, charities and individuals

– Leads on a cross communal initiative to roll out a Postvention strategy across the community

– Provides Suicide First Aid training

– Raises awareness in the community about mental illness through our mass participation event the Mental Health Awareness Shabbat

– Provides mental health support

– Provides support to carers and to those affected by suicide

What are your current priorities?

Prevention
Jami are actively involved with encouraging the community to adopt a whole population approach to suicide prevention by up-skilling groups and organisations to be able to recognise mental illness and suicidal ideation and providing a first aid response.

Support after a suicide
Jami has set up the Emergency Response Initiative Consortium (ERIC) which has brought together a range of charities from the Jewish Community to create a strategic response plan which can provide services to schools and other organisations after a suicide. The ERIC is led by Jami and working in partnership with CST, Jewish Bereavement Counselling Service, Norwood, Pajes, and leading bereavement charity, Grief Encounter.

We are in the early days of this group, drafting guidelines to schools which will be launched in November 2019. We aim to establish a cross communal response team of trained workers who can be called upon to provide immediate support to those impacted by a suicide.

What challenges are you currently facing?

Currently when there is a death to suicide in a Jewish school or in the community many agencies and professionals offer help and support. By co-ordinating the ERIC, Jami hope to streamline the response and maximise resources.