How dogs help one UK community with mental health

DW (English)

In a small UK town, a community program has been created to address mental health concerns that are frequently caused by loneliness. Volunteers with dogs often help out.

Transcript

00:00Nobody should be left alone. Community is a priority in the small town of Froome in the south of England.

00:07James Lewis and Amy Wood founded the organisation Dogs for Health to help people with mental health problems by bringing them along on walks.

00:16There is so much social isolation in this country that we don't tackle.

00:21Doing it the way we do it with the dogs, it means that the person feels more comfortable.

00:25They don't have to talk to me, they can talk to my dog.

00:28James Lewis has been looking after former soldier Danny Perry for two years now.

00:33After his discharge from military service, Danny suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and had to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital.

00:42Now he hopes he will soon be able to function without medication altogether.

00:46Being able to talk to James, it's like I've known him for years, it's fantastic.

00:51And the dogs, at the end of the walk, they all want to cuddle as well, which is, it's an amazing feeling.

01:00Dogs for Health is not the only initiative in Froome that provides personal support.

01:05In the so-called men's shed, men can do woodwork side by side, or just come for a chat, like John Caulfield.

01:14After his retirement, the former engineer suffered from depression.

01:19It's relaxed, it's where you can share things if you want to,

01:23and get some quite constructive and helpful feedback and response from people who are perhaps in a similar situation.

01:30It's no longer just a men's shed, anyone can take part for a donation.

01:35There are now around 1,000 initiatives like this in the United Kingdom, and the number is growing.

01:43Some of the areas that we don't work well enough with is younger people and ethnic minorities.

01:48But increasingly, young people are suffering from the same things that everyone else is,

01:53in terms of mental health, in terms of anxiety and depression.

01:57The Froome Medical Centre coordinates everything, with a focus on prevention.

02:02As a doctor, Helen Kingston has observed that many problems arise because patients are lonely.

02:08She's well connected with organisations like the men's shed.

02:12Since the new initiative, hospital emergency admissions have fallen by around 14%.

02:18Sometimes, if you can recognise when people are struggling, and put in some simple measures,

02:25that can turn that situation around from becoming a crisis,

02:30to being something that people are managing day to day, and avoiding admissions.

02:37In Denny Perry's case, his hospital team had put him in touch with Patrick and Dogs for Health.

02:42With success.

02:44I have now got to the stage where I feel confident that I'm in a much better place,

02:49and I've spoken to James at length about helping the charity out.

02:54I'd like to put back now what I have gained out of it, and put back to anybody else that needs it as well.

03:01And people need help everywhere.

03:03Patrick is looking to start a Dogs for Health initiative in the Philippines, and Danny wants to help him.

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