Partnership presentations tell this story in a moving and direct way. They are one of the North Shore Schizophrenia Society's most important educational programs.

Partnership Education consists of a panel of two or three guest speakers - a person with a psychiatric diagnosis, a family member and, when available, a mental health professional. The guests are presented as a team and each describes his or her own personal experience with mental illness.

The presentations are available to schools, workplaces, professionals, service clubs and all those who work daily with the public. NSSS gives special priority for the program to Capilano University and North Shore high schools as schizophrenia usually strikes in the late teens or early twenties. Recognition of the illness by young people and their teachers is especially useful in getting help for those who are falling ill.

Partnership Education is based on a personal storytelling model. It is a unique and powerful presentation that helps students and people in the community understand the nature and prevalence of chronic and severe mental illness. Being able to listen and talk to people with first-hand experience struggling with the illness gives the audience an even greater appreciation for how hard it can be. Questions are answered directly by the presentation team.

Partnership sessions invariably evoke thoughtful audience response and participation. They demystify mental illness and help fight ignorance, prejudice and dusty old Hollywood myths. Partnership Education provides essential facts about the biological basis of mental illness. It also helps many people whose relatives are ill to understand and cope within the family and in society.

Groups for whom the program is tailored include high school, college and university students, bus drivers, police forces, social workers, teachers and counsellors, church groups, service clubs, employee assistance program providers, medical and nursing students and psychiatric residents, home support workers, and financial aid workers.

If your group might be interested in a Partnership presentation, please don't hesitate to contact us.

"Compassion follows understanding. It is therefore incumbent on us to understand as best we can. The burden of disease will then become lighter for all." - Dr. E. Fuller Torrey

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