Bridgeport High School Students Participate in Wellness Check-In Session
By: , June 8, 2023
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton (second left) and Minister of Education and Youth, Hon. Fayval Williams (right), speak with students of Bridgeport High School in Portmore, St. Catherine – Nathan McKenzie (left) and Anisa Hinds, while sitting on a Wellness Bench donated by the Health Ministry on Wednesday (June 7). The occasion was a Wellness Check-In Session hosted at the institution by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Youth.
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Student of Bridgeport High School in Portmore, St. Catherine, Kaheel McEwan (right), squeezes a stress ball while practising stress-management techniques during a Wellness Check-In session at the institution on Wednesday (June 7). Also participating is his classmate, Josheem Chambers. The session was hosted by the Ministry of Health and Wellness in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Youth.
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton (left), unveils a Wellness Bench donated by the Ministry to Bridgeport High School in Portmore, St. Catherine, on Wednesday (June 7). Others looking on are Minister of Education and Youth, Hon. Fayval Williams (third right); Principal, Beverley Harris (second right) and student Nathan McKenzie. The occasion was a Wellness Check-In Session hosted at the school by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Ministry of Education.The Full Story
Students of Bridgeport High School in Portmore, St. Catherine, participated in a Wellness Check-In Session at the institution on Wednesday (June 7), which was designed to encourage positive practices during stressful situations.
The session was led by Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, in collaboration with stakeholders from the Ministry of Education and Youth.
These engagements are expected to be conducted in several other institutions islandwide as part of the Ministry’s School Mental Health Literacy Programme.
The programme is intended to promote mental wellness among the nation’s youth and reduce the stigma associated.
During Wednesday’s engagement, Dr. Tufton encouraged the students to build their self-esteem and identify accountability partners who can assist them in manoeuvring challenges experienced in their lives.
He shared some of the stressful situations experienced as a teenager and gifted the students with stress balls.
Provision of the balls forms part of stress-management techniques designed to help the youngsters cope with challenges when they are feeling overwhelmed.
A Wellness Bench was also handed over to the school and represents what Dr. Tufton calls a ‘safe place’.
“It is a symbol of wellness… and when you have any little challenge, you can think it through. Anytime you feel down, alone or under pressure, the solution is to find your safe space,” he said.
“When it comes to stress… when you can’t bother and you feel like you’re going to fight because you are being bullied, always remember that that’s not the best that you can do,” the Minister further stated.
The school’s Principal, Beverley Harris, said students struggling with mental health issues and trauma have been afforded the opportunity to meet with Director of Child and Adolescent Mental Health in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Judith Leiba, and guidance counsellors.
“We have [identified] a couple of students who are struggling with [among other things] deaths in their families. So, they (Health Ministry) have about 25 to 30 students along with the guidance team [from the school with whom they are working],” she disclosed.