PICARDY TO HELP COMBAT TEENAGE DEPRESSION

PICARDY Media Group are working on a pioneering new strategy with the Young People’s Unit of Edinburgh Royal Infirmary to tackle teenage depression.
The company have already produced two video tools to educate teenagers about the seriousness of the problem, and are now in the process of taking the project a stage further by developing an interactive CD-ROM and web-site package. The approach helps to recognise depression as a serious illness which affects many teens - one in 30 adolescents aged between 14 and 15-years-old display symptoms of clinical depression.
This new multimedia element will go far beyond the boundaries of the previous videos, combining digitally animated content with case study material. Producer Elaine McSorley commented: “We’ve used animated sequences to create the metaphor of trees in park environment, evoking the idea that growth comes from nourishment and care.
We wanted to create a learning tool which was both inspiring and illuminating.”
By working closely with the Young People’s Unit, which provides a comprehensive mental health service, Picardy have helped to create a psycho-education package about clinical teenage depression. This package for schoolchildren and youth groups is aimed at assisting teenagers in understanding depression, informing help seeking, self care and providing accurate information about treatment.
(GB)