Bluemind Foundation invites professional and self-trained hairdressers in Abidjan to apply for the first edition of the Heal by Hair 2022 training course, which will take place from 27 February to 2 March at the Azalaï Hotel in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire).
By the editorial staff
Heal by Hair is a short and innovative three-day training programme, which covers the basic principles of active listening and mental health. It is aimed at professional and self-trained hairdressers living in a French-speaking African country. The programme aims to enable hairdressers to observe and recognise the first signs of mental health problems and, if necessary, to refer people to mental health experts. The aim is to train first aiders, not health professionals.
Training by mental health experts
Hairdressers in Abidjan and particularly in the communes of Yopougon, Abobo and Cocody will have until 9 February 2022 to apply to take part in this first edition of Heal by Hair. The training will be given by experts in mental health, namely sociologists, psychologists, Ivorian, pan-African and international psychiatrists, all convinced that a different perspective must be taken on mental health and that with a short training in mental health, first-level workers can contribute to having a lasting impact on the field.
« In the absence of professionals, people turn to substitutes«
Indeed, according to Dr Olga Porquet, an Ivorian psychiatrist and member of the Bluemind Foundation’s Scientific Council, « even if people don’t explicitly recognise that they need support from a mental health professional (…) in the absence of professionals, people turn to substitutes.
91% of hairdressers are willing to train in mental health first aid
According to cross-study report published by the Bluemind Foundation, as of November 2021, 67.3% of women surveyed confide in beauty care professionals. Furthermore, 91% of hairdressers are willing to train in mental health first aid; more than 6 out of 10 women would trust a hairdresser as a mental health first aider. « The hairdresser’s salon is a place where people meet and tell each other everything: family problems, husbands, etc. The « Heal by Hair » programme can change the lives of many women. It can give women the courage to confide in each other and to be listened to instead of being judged, » says Fanta, an Ivorian hairdresser.
Abidjan, the first stage
Abidjan is the first step in a series of free training sessions, as part of the Heal by Hair programme. The programme will be extended to several other countries in the following months, including Cameroon and Togo. By 2035, the Bluemind Foundation aims to train 1,000 hairdressers across 20 African cities and contribute to the improvement of the mental health of 5,000,000 African women.
For more information: www.bluemindfoundation.org
