Mental Health Week: Haaga-Helia’s President Teemu Kokko highlights the sense of community – “Everyday micro-encounters can change a person's whole life”
Rosa Weckman, Haaga-Helia’s Wellbeing Specialist discussed the themes of Mental Health Week with President Teemu Kokko.
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This week, National Mental Health Week takes place. This year’s theme is encountering – everyone deserves to be seen.
– A student health survey has found that up to 16 % of students suffer from some symptoms of mental illness on a daily basis, such as insomnia, difficulty concentrating, tension, depression, or anxiety. It’s a broad phenomenon, Weckman says.
At Haaga-Helia, promoting wellbeing is an important value. President Teemu Kokko refers to Haaga-Helia's strategy.
– Our strategy emphasizes the importance of community and enthusiasm on which all three of our key strategies are based on. It plays a bigger role than what people usually think, he notes.
Haaga-Helia invests in student wellbeing
Kokko says that investing in the wellbeing of students in everyday life can be seen, for example, in Haaga-Helia supporting the activities of the student organization Helga and encouraging students to group together. Often, the struggle with mental health problems is complicated by the fact that there is no one around to talk to. That’s why the importance of community is emphasized.
– Grouping is one vaccination against challenges with mental health, Kokko sums up.
All of Haaga-Helia's operations are based on a healthy community. In addition to FSHS and municipal services, there are professionals in preventive mental health work for students inside Haaga-Helia: a psychiatric nurse, a study psychologist, a university pastor and a wellbeing specialist.
In addition, personnel are provided with training. In Haaga-Helia, a lot of work has been done to develop guidance and student counseling. Guiding is the responsibility of all teachers, not just student counsellors.
By following the sandbox rules, you can go a long way
Everyone in the community should pay attention to others around them. Everyone has a responsibility to show attention and interest to people close to them, even if they don’t know them.
Kokko talks about the “sandbox rules” – as a child, playing with others in the sandbox, we have learned that we have to play with everyone. We have to know how to say thank you and please and apologize if necessary. These simple skills are still important today.
– Sometimes the direction of life depends on small words and nuances. Everyday micro-encounters can change a person’s entire life.
Mental Health Week will be visible this week on Haaga-Helia’s Instagram account as it's taken over by mental health professionals on Thursday. On Wednesday, as usual, you can come and discuss the phenomena of wellbeing for VoimaHali remote coffees.