Wellbeing alternatives to the medicalisation of human distress - South Tees Wellbeing Network Connect-Explore-Act Event

Wellbeing alternatives to the medicalisation of human distress 

ALL SPEAKERS AND WORKSHOPS NOW CONFIRMED, SEE BELOW

South Tees Wellbeing Network brings you an event to challenge your thinking, connect to others leading vital changes, explore the wellbeing alternatives and give you confidence to act collaboratively and rebalance the way we think and support people experiencing distress. 

Book your place soon before spaces run out! We anticipate a lot of interest in this event. We may be offering virtual attendance, so if you can't make it all day, or the event was full before you got a chance, don't fret just yet! Book on the waiting list and we'll keep you in the loop.

To all those booking:

• Please do not book as a maybe, booking your place is a commitment to the whole event that may prevent others from attending.
• So book it, then commit to it! If you need to cancel, please give us a minimum of 72 hours notice and use the link in your booking confirmation to do so.
  
• Thanks for your understanding. Enjoy this brilliant event we are working hard to bring you.
• We will be sending a couple of resources we would like everyone attending to be familiar with before arriving, couple of videos and the option of some written materials. We want everyone on the level so we can get you ready to take action.

The Event:

Based on a members survey held in early 2023 of topic options for planning our major system events “Wellbeing alternatives to clinical mental health support – De-medicalization” was the most selected answer with over 50% of 450 members voting for the topic.

Now, with consideration of the common language used on this Topic and our approach of Connect, Explore and Act, the event is titled “Wellbeing alternatives to the medicalisation of human distress” and scheduled for Thursday 11^th April 2024 at the Curve Building, Teesside University.

Conference morning Speakers:

On understanding the problem and regional system responses to medicalisation of human distress:

Dr Iain Caldwell - Chartered Psychologist - "Understanding the medicalisation of distress (Mental Health) and what can we do about it?

Dr Robin Hudson - NENC ICB Clinical Lead Mental Health - "The strategic drivers to prevent medicalisation of human distress and the role of commissioning strategy in the region to address the problem"

On examples of wellbeing alternatives and support:

Amber Farrier/Julie McVeigh - Connected Coaching NE (Brene Brown trained dare to lead trainers) - "Shame based distress - meeting with empathy"

Pasha Tanriverdi - Together in a Crisis (Everyturn) - "Outcomes and learning from the Together in a Crisis service and other wellbeing alternatives"

Afternoon Workshops (delegates will select 2 of 4 preferences)

Amanda Chalmers (Changing Futures Trauma Informed Lead) - "Trauma informed and person centred emerging practices for human distress"

Robert Webb/Andy Cox (Clear Signal) - "The 'Signal Model' - A wellbeing assessment,  connecting to local support and public health mapping"

Joe Hilton (Growth Planner Co) - "Journaling taster workshop - Free Wellbeing Network Journal included for all participants"

Richie Andrew (Public Health South Tees/Wellbeing Network) / Alan Johnson (Change Working) - "Why we need a Wellbeing Pathway and the steps required to achieve it"

Objective:

Hold a cross-sector, health and wellbeing, high-capacity system event, connecting leadership orientated delegates representing organisations whose work seeks to address key factors that positively and negatively affect population mental health and wellbeing.

The event will unify knowledge, explore evidence of the issues, current thinking and practices, and seek commitments to Act on future development opportunities in South Tees for a person-centred, trauma informed wellbeing pathway to empower and drastically reduce the medicalisation of human distress.

Anticipated Outcomes of Event:

• Wellbeing system leaders as early adopters and signed up to an expression of interest to the South Tees Wellbeing pathway scoping and development program – to be initially facilitated by the South Tees Wellbeing Network with workshops led by Alan Johnson/Richie Andrew of Change Working.

• Shared system understanding of the strategic, economic, and social drivers, the context of medicalisation issues, the need for pathway development, person-centred and trauma-informed frameworks to give confidence to those challenging the practices that allow over medicalisation to occur.

• Support rollout of ICB clinical Anxiety/Depression strategy and their proposed action on over-medicalisation of human distress.

• Further increase in membership of the well-being network to support more inclusive system changes and future involvement in programs from the network and our members.

• Fostering of new collaborations to support the event objectives through post-event insights with delegates and their organisations.

• Recordings of speaker presentations and outcomes published publicly and promoted via the Wellbeing network to widen and increase the impact of the other event outcomes.

Background:

The South Tees Wellbeing Network is a Middlesbrough/Redcar and Cleveland membership ‘network of networks’ comprised of people who work, paid or unpaid, in organisations where support is given to people’s health and wellbeing in the South Tees area. Now nearly two years since launching, we have well over 800 members from 100’s of multi-sector health and wellbeing orientated organisations, including all the key local anchor institutions.

When we use the term wellbeing, we mean the current academic and practical definitions where employment, financial status, relationships, quality of work, health, identity, environment, inequalities and much more all act in unison to affect people's health and well-being. As these issues become more chronic, their mental health can also suffer.

Additional pre event useful materials
You may enjoy this phenomenal lecture by Dr James Davies (Sadly unable to join us at this event) - author of the book 'Sedated' on the topic of how we ended up with such a heavily medicalised model for mental health, the impact of that and what needs to change. 

We would also recommend one of the most watched TED talks ever (over 100 million views across YouTube and TED), by Brene Brown, on 'the power of Vulnerability'. Two of our key speakers at the event were trained by Brene Brown herself and will be talking about shame based distress, vulnerability, gender triggers and more. 

Book your place soon before spaces run out! We anticipate a lot of interest in this event.