Recently, Christine Ngigi, Director at HOREC—one of our program partners in Kenya—attended the Christian Connections in Health conference held in Nairobi. The theme of the conference was “Mental Health Matters: Speaking Up for Mental Health in Christian Communities.” This important gathering was co-hosted by the Christian Health Association of Kenya and, Anglo-Lusophone Africa. 
The conference brought together a diverse group of participants, including health program staff, community health workers, health practitioners, Christian health association leaders, church and lay leaders, psychologists, psychiatrists, and mental health practitioners. The focus was on exploring how to integrate mental health support into both facility and community health services.
Christine returned with valuable insights that we are eager to share:
- The Connection Between Caregiving and Mental Health: “The conference really opened my eyes to the connection we have as caregivers to address the mental health of the children we serve.”
- Breaking the Stigma: “Mental health has a very negative stigma in Kenya; this conference was a foundation for changing that.”
- Holistic Healing: “Mental health is rooted not just in the mind but also in the body and spirit. God is an important part of healing mental health and must be part of the plan for healing.”
- Specific Strategies: “I learned strategies and approaches to help children with HIV and mental health issues.”
- Care for the Caregivers: “The mental health of the caregivers is equally important. You work so hard as a caregiver that you forget yourself.”
- A Call for Reflection: “There is a significant gap in caring for the mental health of the caregivers. The conference created a space for me to reflect on this, and I realized that I am not taking care of my staff and myself.”
In light of Christine’s experiences, Global Hope is committed to furthering our focus on mental health. We have begun the process of developing a strategy to share Christine’s learnings with all our Global Hope partners. This initiative aims to enhance our care for the mental health needs of the children we serve and ensure the well-being of our dedicated caregivers.