What is Jigsaw?
Craig Hodges, Director of Service Development with Headstrong gives us a perspective on Jigsaw in operation around the country and here in Ballymun.
You may have heard people talking about this new program called Jigsaw and wondering what it is all about. The thinking behind Jigsaw originated in Headstrong, The National Centre for Youth Mental Health. Headstrong came into being in 2006 as a result of mental health being the number one health issue for young people in Ireland. Central to its work is the Jigsaw program which works with communities to identify the best approach to supporting young people with emerging mental health problems.
There is a clear recognition that the current service system is not responding to need in that 75% of mental health diagnoses are made in the 15 to 25 year age group. Given this, Jigsaw aims to work with communities to strengthen the service system for young people aged 12-25. One of the unique aspects of the Jigsaw program is that it brings together key members of the community including education, health, mental health, primary care, youth sector and young people themselves. Together they form a planning team that works in partnership to determine the way forward for young people’s mental health in their community.
A comprehensive needs and resource analysis is undertaken which helps to identify the strengths and needs of that community and gathers data from a range of people including service providers, parents and young people. From this a comprehensive plan is developed which is then endorsed by the local Planning Committee (or service design team) and community members.
Headstrong has undertaken all of this work in partnership with youngballymun here in Ballymun in the last couple of years.
A critical element of Jigsaw is that aims to re-engineer existing resources rather than provide new ones. In the case of Ballymun the WAF training and practice allows services not traditionally involved in responses to the mental health needs of young people supported to provide such responses across the community. This is particularly important at a time when resources are limited, such as now. Current circumstances really challenge us to be more creative and connected in using our existing resource base in ways that work best for young people.
As a national program Jigsaw is currently operational in four diverse communities around the country - Galway, Meath, Kerry and Ballymun - and that number is about to expand to five with Jigsaw Roscommon. It is hoped that Jigsaw will become a brand, which resonates with young people around the country, and that young people will recognise it as the brand that provides support to them in their local community through a number of different approaches.
Jigsaw is an umbrella term to describe a number of activities that aim to better support young people’s mental health and wellbeing locally. In each community, the particular elements that best respond to young people’s mental health needs in that community are configured to provide a unique tailored local service.
In Ballymun there are three aspects to the Jigsaw youngballymun work
- Strand 1 – Universal Approach (for all young people)
- Strand 2 – Wraparound Facilitator Model (for young people connected in with a range of youth, justice, education, training and employment services)
- Strand 3 – Crisis Response (for young people with urgent / acute mental health and wellbeing support needs )
Each strand of the service is different and has different components; however, they all sit under the Jigsaw umbrella with the aim of improving young people’s mental health and wellbeing in Ballymun. One of the strengths of the Jigsaw program in Ballymun is that it works in partnership with youngballymun in implementing the model locally. youngballymun has played a key role with Headstrong and local service partners in making things happen locally. Their strategy across the lifecycle means that our youth wellbeing services are integrated into other services to children, young people and families. Effective local partnerships is the key to addressing the key challenges that go with making reconfigured mental health services to young people a reality at a local level.
Implementing Jigsaw involves change and change is always a difficult process. Part of Headstrong and youngballymun’s work is to support organisations that want to deliver a more accessible mental health service to young people through this change process. Whilst Headstrong’s role in supporting communities is for an initial period of three years, it is recognised that implementing a systems change process like Jigsaw is in fact a long term strategy. With the support of youngballymun it is anticipated that implementing Jigsaw will have a lasting impact for young people and their families in the Ballymun community.
