Armenia
Spitak, Community-based Care House
The experience of The CARe Network was basically used in four directions: university programs, trainings for mental health professionals, opening of Recovery College and training for peer consultants. At the end of April 2016 first Community Based Care House was open in Spitak as an alternative to large boarding houses such as Vardenis Psychoneurological Boarding House that provides shelter for more than 450 people.
Recovery College started in Armenia since October 1st 2015. The College has 8 peer consultants, and starting from this year - 5 mental health professionals. The College already has 28 graduates. Armenian College has its own peculiarities: it is designed for people with mental health problems, their family members, as well as for young and experienced mental health professionals. It turns out that Recovery College lessons are already a possibility for social integration.
In Armenia, CARe principles were used for training of mental health professionals from different regions of Armenia. The RA Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs decided to create and retrain groups of specialists /team that includes 3 members: psychiatrist, psychologist and social worker/ for each region to evaluate mental health patients at place. The training program included one of the basic CARe principles, that evaluation should be done with an emphasis on the individuals’ stored resources and recovery, and not only on disease and treatment.
- Updates from Lilit Baghdasaryan
Lilit Baghdasaryan
CARe Ambassador in Armenia
Lilit Baghdasaryan
Yerevan, Armenia
Lilit Baghdasaryan
Doctor of Psychology
Head of Community Service of
Armenian Mental Health Foundation
Lilit Baghdasaryan (Yerevan, Armenia) took the degree of Doctor of Psychology in 2009.
In 1995, she graduated from the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Philosophy, Sociology and Psychology, Yerevan State University. Since 2000, Lilit has been working as a psychologist in the Day Center, the first one in Armenia, established by the Mental Health Foundation of Armenia (MHF), which has been implementing psycho-social rehabilitation of people with long-term mental health problems.
Since 2006, she is the Head of Community Service of MHF. Furthermore, Lilit Baghdasaryan is a Lecturer at the Chair of Special Pedagogy and Psychology, Armenian State Pedagogical University after Kh. Abovyan. Now she is a member of the Mental Health Policy Group organised by the OSF Armenia and the Ministry of Health of the RA.
Narine Khachatryan, PhD
CARe Ambassador in Armenia
Narine Khachatryan, PhD
Yerevan, Armenia
Head of the Chair of Personality Psychology at Yerevan State University (Armenia)
Narine Khachatryan is a head of the Chair of Personality Psychology at Yerevan State University (Armenia) since 2011. She received her doctoral degree in psychology in 2006 (kandidat nauk) and is Associate Professor of Psychology (docent) since 2008. She is a Director of the Personality Psychology and Psychological Counseling Master’s program. She obtained her academic experience through participation in a number of summer schools, workshops and study visits on research methodology and curriculum development, as well as practice experience in psychological counseling in Russia, Europe and the US.
Spitak Care House / Սպիտակի Խնամքի Տուն https://www.facebook.com/SpitakHouse/