A soft heart and a kind ear for those with mental demons
Mary-Anne Dobrovic is manager at the Schizophrenia & Bipolar Disorders Alliance’s residential home, Alon House
Tell me about your average work day.
My day starts with shopping for groceries for the home, then sorting, packing, freezing and locking away. I attend to all administrative duties, e-mails, daily record-keeping, petty cash and bookkeeping. I take telephone calls and attend to “walk-ins” who need assistance to try to find suitable homes, hospitals or even just someone to listen to their needs.
I check all daily registers for the residents, deal with any maintenance issues, such as changing light globes, repairing door hinges or calling plumbers, electricians or handymen when necessary.
My days are also filled with checking in with the residents on their wellbeing, sorting out communal issues and giving praise and support where I can.
The residents also have to have regular one-on-one chats with me, and we also keep a record of their weight, height and so on. The Gauteng health department does quarterly home checks to see we are taking good care of our residents.
Tell me about Sabda.
Sabda (the South African Schizophrenia & Bipolar Disorders Alliance) was initially called the Friends of Tara, when it was started by a group of concerned parents who had children with mental illness and needed support. The idea was to create a home from home.
There was regular fundraising through monthly jumble sales, bridge drives and also a very substantial donation to purchase a home in Blairgowrie, Randburg.
Before the pandemic Sabda held monthly support meetings for all outpatients, family and friends. There were guest speakers, who covered topics from motivation to medical issues, but this all had to stop during lockdown. We had our first face-to-face meeting at the end of March 2022, keeping to all Covid-19 regulations.
How has the pandemic affected the mental health of your residents?
Some residents had to leave our home as the pandemic caused financial issues and the increase in fees meant it was out of reach for some. This also caused a decrease in monthly fees for our home, and we barely had enough to keep our doors open.
The anxiety levels of residents rose dramatically, the cooped-up feeling and not being able to obtain cigarettes caused a huge amount of stress. At the time, I was the only person allowed to come to work and the entire load was on my shoulders. I also had to do all the residents’ personal shopping.
How did you end up working at the residential house?
I have been here for 10 years. My eldest daughter did volunteer work at Tara Hospital for many years and heard that a new housemother/manager was needed, I applied for the job and was successful.
What makes you good at what you do?
I have a very soft heart and love people. I also have a kind ear and love to help where I can.
What did you want to be as a child?
I always wanted to be a nurse or work in a hotel. I love working with people.