Our latest documentary film; Time To Respond was launched on 21st June 2018, by the Mental Health Minister, Maureen Watt.
The documentary highlights good practice when working with survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse who suffer from Postnatal Depression. The woman talk with great honesty and courage about their experiences of good and bad practice.
There was a post-screening question and answer session that followed, attended by health and social care professionals, led to conversation on how to develop and further progress working practice, as well as comments on the personal and professional aspects of the survivors experience.
Comments on the event included:
“An amazing afternoon, very emotional. I bought the film as a present for a team.” Nurse Practitioner
“Congratulations on this afternoon’s event, it was truly a significant occasion. My congratulations to you and Sitar, and especially those wonderfully brave women.”
“The film was wonderful, you are both doing such important work.”
“I wanted to say how much I admired and respected the courage of the women who were willing to share their stories. What you have done is so strong and so necessary, and so beautifully handled.”
“Congratulations on something which is so necessary and will help people understand so much more, what is needed.”
The women involved in the film were given a standing ovation by the audience and we finished with a contribution from Dr. Sarah Nelson – if you wish to read speech, please click on file below for a pdf version.
Dr. Sarah Nelson – Time to Respond speech
ONGOING WORK SINCE TIME TO RESPOND LAUNCH
Since the launch of Time to Respond in June 2018, we have been funded by the Scottish Government to promote and distribute the film. We have been focussing on Health Visitor and Nursing Courses in Universities around Scotland. We have enjoyed lively and productive discussions with hundreds of students on the topic of childhood sexual abuse and the barriers involved in disclosing and responding.
This was with student nurses and practice teachers at Glasgow Caledonian University and with nursing students at Dundee University as well as their Kirkcaldy campus.
On Monday 13 May, there was a documentary screening at the Maternal Mental Health Scotland 6th Annual Conference in Glasgow. The audience comprised of professionals involved in Peri-natal Mental Health both in the statuory and voluntary sectors. The focus of the discussion being a fear amongst staff of getting it wrong and making things worse for survivors and the difficulty in finding training.
Comments about the film were that it should be shown to every staff group in health and social work and that it was so true to survivors’ experience.
FURTHER UPDATE
We have also screened the film at the Society of Midwifery Conference at Napier University, where over 200 midwifery students were in attendance focussing on trauma in childbirth. In addition to this, it was shown to health visitors and nursing students at Stirling University, Robert Gordon in Aberdeen, at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, the Royal College of Midwives and Royal College of Nursing. The culmination of this distribution will be a parliamentary screening on the 10 September, with tickets sold out. This would bring the total viewing figure so far to around 1,500 so far in Scotland.