The “Hero” project (Housing an Educational ROad toward civil right) is part of the “Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020” promoted by the WHO and falls within the “Good health and well-being” objective of the “Sustainable” program Development" of the United Nations.
The project has multiple specific objectives:
The Project is recognized at European level within the Erasmus+ programme, through which the European Commission wants to encourage joint work between partners from different countries, to build an integrated path towards a quality of life that facilitates well-being and social inclusion , against stigma and marginalization.
A strategic program for the European Community, if we consider that mental disorders affect approximately 27% (83m.) of European citizens annually (European Social Work, 2013).
HERO - sharing the know-how of various EU countries relating to the social inclusion of people with serious mental distress, training methods and consolidated practice in the housing sector - aims to study what makes a place or which makes it a source of well-being, not only for users, but also for their family members, operators and citizens. Places that must be interconnected, permeable, habitable and modifiable. Where everyone can feel welcomed as a person, not characterized or stigmatized. Where everyone can recognize that mental health (and not only) is a heritage that concerns everyone and can be achieved if everyone is involved.
By housing we mean a process that favors the transition from the helping relationship to social inclusion. Numerous studies have shown how "community-based" services obtain better results in terms of treatment compliance, clinical symptoms, quality of life, housing stability and rehabilitation, compared to other models of care (Braun P. et al. 1981 ; Conway M. et al. 1994; Bond et al. 2001). At the same time, housing understood in this way is connected to the safeguarding of rights (citizenship, reduction of stigma, etc.), the rationalization of public spending (offering an alternative to the costs of excessive recourse to institutionalisation) and the development of an active and competent citizenry.
5 European countries involved
270 citizens and public bodies
135 public service professionals
135 users and family members
A result of the exchange of experiences between HERO partners is the e-book “Housing and mental health. Quality indicators for use by local communities". The report has identified a series of indicators capable of acting as European guidelines for future initiatives in the mental health recovery process.
In addition to the Di Liegro Foundation, Hero's other partners, coming from five European Union countries (Italy, Great Britain, Belgium, Greece and Croatia), are:
Italy: The Mental Health Department of ASL Roma 2 represents the reference and the clinical guarantor for the protection of mental health, and is expressed in the unitary and coherent organization of the various structural and functional articulations in which the taking charge of the mental health needs of the population belonging to its territory is expressed. It works for the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of all forms of mental distress, favoring personalized interventions and intervening according to a logic of psychiatry and community psychology.
Belgium: Pegode is a non-profit organization. It actively takes part in the development of an inclusive society by carrying out projects that focus on housing and are strongly connected to each other. Provides personalized support to people with disabilities. The association is well integrated into the territory having developed, over the years, work and collaboration networks with various local agencies.
Greece: L'Panhellenic Union for Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Employment Inclusion (PEPSAEE) is a non-governmental scientific association. Founded in 1997 in Greece, it specializes in supporting and coordinating rehabilitation and empowerment interventions, in promoting work integration initiatives for people with mental health problems.
Croatia: The Department of Social Psychiatry of the University Psychiatric Hospital of Zagreb (Croatia) is the main Croatian institution for the rehabilitation of people with serious mental health problems. The department collaborates with patient associations that support people's care in their homes and in day centers. It is also networked with other local social institutions to promote and implement housing interventions.
Great Britain: Expanding Horizons is a third sector organization that works in the field of social inclusion, it represents a key and influential reference on the topic. MEH is active in the area of social inclusion through partnerships that carry out projects to support people with psychosocial distress, promoting job placement, training and professional development with advanced learning methodologies for adults.
