Art of grooming young minds to know jot of life

Like the theme for this year’s World Mental Health Day (October 10) - "Dignity in mental health," Hidd Rehabilitation Centre in the Kingdom has been striving in the last 14 years to fetch dignity in the lives of its students.

Established on May 5, 2001, this institution has been successful in meliorating mentally challenged children and shaping them to be a part of the society. The centre is considered to be one the first centres to start in the Kingdom.  

“We have 23 students here (16 girls and nine boys).   I care them as my own children. They easily make out and grasp whatever we teach them.  Apart from other language classes, we have classes for Arabic, mathematics and science. We also provide classes for painting, music and cooking,” said Basma Saleh Isa Buradha, the Principal of Hidd Rehabilitation Centre.

According to her, though all students are mentally disabled, there are students who excel in activities like painting and acting. “We have Muhammed Bu Haza, who won the first prize in a painting competition held in Bahrain. Another student Yacoob Ahmed is acting in a television serial titled “Al Khelma Al Thaiba” on Bahrain TV,” she cited examples. Buradha said that sometimes they had to teach even toiletry manners for small children.

The centre, located in Hidd, is fully equipped with state-of-the-art facilities to make the teaching and training of students easier and comfortable for them.  

All the classrooms are fitted with electronic display boards to teach and display the teaching materials.  The centre also has electronic study table (almost a size of a normal study table), which is the first in a GCC country.

The electronic study table helps the students get access to infotainment sessions and also play games. The students are very happy in their own world. Girls are being taught how to make sweets in their cooking classes every Thursday.

 “The classes start at 7.45am. Even though we have a strict timetable for our classes, we don’t stretch them for studies alone.  We give them ample space to explore themselves,” Buradha said. She felt that proper awareness among the public could change the way of treating such children in the society. 

“They are the gift of the God. We have to treat them as special. We also have special sessions for parents and give them adequate training as to how to give them special care and address their problems judiciously,” she added.

Every year, October 10 is observed as the World Mental Health Day, which is supported by the United Nations (UN), to raise public awareness and consciousness about mental health issues worldwide. This event encourages open discussions on illnesses as well as investments in prevention and treatment services.

This year, World Health Organisation (WHO) will be raising public awareness of what can be done to ensure that mentally challenged people can continue to live with dignity.