The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Australian interest in innovative therapy
FIFE ORGANISATION FEAT has had a visit from Down Under.
Fife Employment Access Trust, celebrating its 20th anniversary of supporting people with mental health conditions to access employment, caught the attention of a similar organisation from the other side of the world.
Social Firms Australia (SoFA) creates durable employment for people with a mental illness or disability by developing social firms and related activities.
Like FEAT, SoFA’s priority is supporting people with a mental illness to get and keep a job.
SoFa manager Dea Morgan heard about the innovative computer-based therapy being delivered by FEAT — cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) — which is also being used in Australia.
But FEAT’s use of the software is in a vocational setting, supporting people with long-term and complex mental health conditions to improve skills such as concentration, attention span and memory.
The software is being used in Australia, but only by senior psychologists, and it is proving very expensive, with opportunities for individuals to access the therapy limited.
Dea contacted FEAT for further information about how staff deliver this work, which led to her visiting Fife for a week to see the range of activities at first hand.
FEAT assistant manager Wendy Barbour said: “Over the last two years our Employ Your Mind project has been using CRT, with support from our own occupational therapist Inga Davidson, and it has been proving extremely beneficial to the client group.
“Having interest from the other side of the world is flattering but also makes us realise just how innovative our approach is.”
Dea said: “I’ve learned a great deal that I can take back to Australia to replicate this excellent practice.”