ANO CSCI Russian House

Today around 4,000,000 people in Russia and 300,000 in Moscow have severe mental health problems. They represent one of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable groups in contemporary Russia. Their stigma and discrimination mean that they are more likely to suffer social isolation, unemployment, neglect and poverty. Much of them cannot access opportunities like education, employment and social interaction, therefore, they are excluded from the rights of citizenship. The mission of Russian House is to improve lives of people suffering severe mental illnesses (schizophrenia, bipolar and unipolar disorders, depression) and to provide them with an opportunity to live their lives independently in the most productive way to the extent that it is possible for each particular person. To reach this goal Russian House runs a rehabilitation center in accordance with the so-called Clubhouse psychosocial model of rehabilitation of the mentally disabled. This model started in the US has been spread throughout the world as one of the most effective ways of helping the mentally disabled people. The Clubhouse model of psychosocial rehabilitation is in a good compliance with recommendations of the World Health Organisation and World Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation. It has gained a worldwide appraisal as one of the best approaches in this sphere. The Clubhouse enables its participants (referred to as members) to acquire or regain the practical skills needed to live and socialize in the community, and teaches them how to cope with their disabilities. It assists in developing the social and living skills such as personal hygiene, cooking, shopping, budgeting, housekeeping and using various means of transport, etc., develops interests and provides a sense of participation and personal worth. Another valuable aspects are education, vocational rehabilitation, employment, and providing a long-life psychosocial support for members. The Clubhouse provides its members with: Day-programme with a strong accent on meaningful work and activities, within which the rehabilitation process itself and other components (see below) are developed. Educational opportunities, Preparation for the employment, vocational training and employment itself, Social and leisure activities, Advocacy and assistance in solving various social and economical problems of Clubhouse members, Providing members with food and other life supplies. This approach is highly effective in terms of improvement of health condition of the Clubhouse participants and their level of social functioning. Researches show sufficient decreasing in frequency of hospitalisations (by 48%), shortening the average length of stay per hospitalisation (by 39%) and increasing of remissions between two subsequent hospitalisations. 25-40% of active Clubhouse members get jobs or/and improve their education using facilities existing in the larger society. Because of its high effectiveness the Clubhouse approach is widely spread - Clubhouses are available in 33 countries from Australia to Canada and from the USA to Japan, with 30% to about 70% of them being non-governmental organizations. However, Russian House is the only organization in Russia now that has a developed Clubhouse programme which has an accreditation certificate at the Clubhouse International confirming that the quality of Russia House rehabilitation programme fits the international standards of quality.