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Three representatives from the Finnish Central Association for Mental Health (MTKL) participated in a seminar held in Võnnu, Estonia, in August 2024. The seminar aimed to be a kickstart for a cooperation network among mental health organizations in the Nordic and Baltic regions. The
event was organized by the Estonian local mental health association Aedorkester and was funded through the NGO program.

Representatives from Estonia, Sweden (RSMH), Finland and Latvia attended the seminar. Estonia was represented by several different associations from Tallinn and the Tartu region.

Among the participants were a housing service provider, a clubhouse, a disability association, and volunteer-
run associations offering low-threshold activities.

Throughout the day, we heard presentations about the state of mental health services in Estonia, including the support for employment of people with partial work capacity and the opportunities to strengthen the inclusion of disadvantaged groups through community means across different age
groups. A psychiatrist also gave a talk on new treatment options for mental disorders, including the use of nutritional therapies.

During the day, there were discussions about the situations in different countries, particularly regarding access to treatment. It was noted that all countries face a common issue of insufficient availability of psychotherapy or difficulty in accessing it. However, unlike in the Nordic countries,
Estonia’s family doctor model ensures a quicker initial contact for mental health problems.

One of the objectives of the meeting was to establish and organize a common network for the Nordic and Baltic countries to share information and strengthen the conditions for peer support activities within mental health organizations. It was decided to continue network discussions
through online meetings, and MTKL plans to try to activate its local associations to join the network. Local associations could offer more to the network from the perspective of peer support practices and development.
We embarked on the trip with a sense of adventure, which turned out to be a good attitude.

Despite well-managed travel arrangements, we were a bit surprised to find half-platoon tent accommodations in the yard of a farm tourism site, with roosters crowing and waking us at three in the morning. However, we concluded that good company and a humorous attitude go a long
way. On the return trip, we enjoyed Tallinn’s sights from the top of a church tower as our guide Kalle led us through Tallinn’s history and culture. Thanks to the wonderful people of Aedorkester for all the arrangements!

Goodwill Agreement for peer counselers Network

Parties of the network of peer counselers:

Estonia – NGO Garden Orchestra;

Finland – Finnish Central Association of Mental Health;

Sweden – Riksförbundet för Social och Mental Hälsa

Parties are based on client-centeredness, confidentiality and general principles
of counseling in the joint activities of the network and in the
implementation of the project “Empowerment of people recovering from
mental disorders”:

• as parties to the network, we wish to increase the competence and
skills of the participants in the network through the sharing of
knowledge and experience, experiential learning and development
activities;

• the aim of the network members’ cooperation is to better support
the coping of people with mental disorders in society and the quality of
counseling offered to them;

In order to achieve the goals, the peer counselers network parties
consider it important:
• ensure the availability of information about the current activities of
your organization in the field of experience consulting;
• ensure the representation of your organization in initiatives
organized to promote network cooperation;
• disseminate the skills and knowledge acquired within the project
among the members of their organizations.

The network is open to organizations whose main activity is peer
counselers.

Network members jointly plan and participate in networking activities.

We ( Jonas Bredford, Stefan Wallerek and Rosemarie Wilhelmsson) arrived by flight from Kastrup to Tallinn Lennart Meri Airport on Thursday, August 24 at 15:10. About an hour later, Gunilla Brändström joined from Umeå. Through a telephone conversation with Åsa Höij, we were informed that she is already at her final destination. We were then picked up by a helpful woman who drove us to a department store where we could buy, among other things, hygiene items such as toothpaste and shampoo, which were confiscated by customs for security reasons. He then drove us to the bus that took us to Kamelia’s holiday home. It turned out to be anything but an ordinary hotel: there was a small wooden house in a very beautiful place in the forest by a small lake, where we had to spend the night. There were various pets around this house such as dogs, cats, turkeys, geese, chickens, snakes (!) and a little goat that was even up on the tables and walking around. The wooden house turned out to be completely occupied by our Finnish and Estonian participants, so we Swedes were directed to a military tent with a stove and metal bunks. Suddenly we were scouts again, which not everyone was quite happy about. The owner of this retreat farm also informed us what was going to happen: – Sorry, something is wrong with our roosters, they start shouting at 4 in the morning… Yes, very true: At 4 a bunch of roosters started crowing to catch up, why there was little sleep so and so… Well it was a fantastic atmosphere and we who love animals thoroughly enjoyed it. However, our female participants decided to spend the next night in a hotel instead, which we completely understand. However, delicious food and interesting discussions with those in the group who knew English were offered. The next day it was time for a seminar in  Vönnu Community Centre, where we were greeted by Annika Pajumaa-Murov, the rursl municipality mayor. This was followed by the speech “Employment opportunities for disabled people”, which was given by Kristel Altosaar from the Estonian Unemployment Fund. We have to remember that all the lectures were held in Estonian and translations were done for us at regular intervals by an outstanding translator, whose name I unfortunately did not catch. It required us to pay very close attention to try to understand everything that was said. However, the general impression from our point of view was that Estonia is a highly developed country, which is not significantly different from Sweden. Kristel left a very dedicated, human and enthusiastic impression, clearly the right person in the right place. Then there was a coffee break where no coffee was served, something had gone wrong in the planning. Instead, we had to sit down and listen to psychiatrist Peeter Lääne, who told us about the latest trends in the treatment of psychiatric disorders. The undersigned asked (given that alcoholism is known to be widespread in the former eastern states) how many of these are alcohol-related, to which he replied that certainly all psychiatric diagnoses can be caused by abuse, but that doesn’t mean they always are. During the following breaks, we were entertained by the blind musician Veronika Söstar, who played the small harp. Next, it was time to make a very impressive overview of Kaido Soom, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, about all the activities they do for people with special needs in the society. The church obviously has a strong position in Estonian society and it does a lot of good for the weaker ones. After lunch, it was time for the participating user organizations to introduce themselves. Among other things, we got acquainted with Estonia’s only fountain house in Tallinn, which has existed for 23 years. Their presentation was very predictable because all fountains are based on the 37 New York directives that must be strictly followed. In the RSMH presentation, we described the history since 1967, where the closure of large mental hospitals and the appointment of a personal ombudsman were significant events. We also explained that the main pillars are peer support, interest policy and education. After a (real) coffee break, a discussion about continued cooperation followed. We are required to have knowledge of how the user’s voice should be heard in society and how they can gain power over their living conditions. They wanted us to enter into a contract obligating us to supply materials to aid them in their efforts. We explained that such a contract cannot be concluded immediately, but that the evaluation of the seminar must take place first. We also explained that the results achieved by RSMH are the fruit of 56 years of struggle and it was not long ago that we were not even welcomed in the corridors of power. That only after the Reinfeldt government, in the so-called PRIO initiative, required municipalities to influence documented users if psychiatry should receive funding, we were suddenly “warmly welcomed everywhere”. Therefore, we advised Estonians that regardless of what one thinks of those in power, one should strive for good relations with them. And don’t waste energy on center shapes and brake pads: don’t talk to the tail when the head is there. After that we finished the seminar and returned to our living quarters for further discussions and social fellowship. Already at 8 o’clock on Saturday morning, it was off to Tallinn by bus and train. We said goodbye to our new Estonian and Finnish colleagues and headed back home to Sweden. All in all, there seem to be good conditions for fruitful cooperation. Estonians are not perfect and neither are we. The important thing is that we recognize it, trust each other and start building something together from there. Once that trust is established, there really shouldn’t be any need for written agreements, we’re all in the same boat.

On August 24-26, people with psychiatric disorders from Latvia, Finland and Sweden visited the NGO Aedorkester as part of the international project. We listened to the guests’ experiences and reviews of the activities, coping and supporting people with psychiatric disorders. At the seminar on August 25, aimed at a wider circle of interested people, presentations were made by the Tötutukassa consultant of the Unemployment Insurance Fund Kristel Altosaar, psychiatrist Dr. Peeter Lääne and pastoral counsellor Kaido Soom. Together we discussed the possibilities for future cooperation. We agreed that the meetings would take place mostly online, once a year a summer seminar could be held in a nice place, which would offer an opportunity to be together, communicate and discuss.

Despite the minor misunderstandings, the participants were satisfied with the event. We thank the Kameelia tourist farm, whose kind hostess hosted us and introduced us to the numerous four-legged and feathered inhabitants, some of which were quite exotic.

See you soon!