Within a year and with limited resources, Dignity House, a mental health rehabilitation facility has been able to support close to 30 people with various mental health conditions and/or addictions to recover and reintegrate successfully into their communities.
As the first private residential mental health rehabilitation facility in Bermuda, Dignity House, as the name reflects, aims to restore the dignity of mental health patients by providing person-centred mental health treatment and rehabilitation services.“A lot of the time, following acute crisis from mental illness, people who are discharged and settled lack the skills to be very productive in the community,” says the director of Dignity House, Nicholas Darceuil.
He adds, “We at Dignity House have put systems in place to help [our clients] to learn how to cook again, learn how to wash again, learn how to be supported emotionally, learn coping skills and be very productive people back [as they re-enter] society.”
The brains behind this life-changing health facility are Nicholas and his wife, Kimberley.
Both nurses, Nicholas and Kimberley have over 50 years’ experience combined in the healthcare industry.
Kimberley has practised as a nurse in Bermuda and in the USA, working with patients with communicable diseases particularly HIV/AIDS.
While working as a nurse in Bermuda, she also volunteered with The Salvation Army for seven years in their Soup Run programme which fed many of the island’s homeless.
During her voluntary services at Salvation Army, she came in contact with underprivileged people whose lack of basic needs were compounded by mental health challenges. This ignited her passion to provide and care for people who lived in less than ideal conditions.
Mr. Darceuil, who has practised in the field of mental health nursing in Trinidad, the UK and Bermuda, could not rest when he noticed how passionate his wife was about finding a way to meet the needs of people in Bermuda who needed support.
On March 17, 2022, their idea became a reality with the opening of Dignity House.
Located in Pembroke, Dignity House does not just serve as a shelter and home for people with varying degrees and kinds of mental health challenges but provide them with quality and compassionate services that aid integrate them back into their communities.
In the year since its inception, Dignity House has grown exponentially. The Darceuils started with a staff of four which has now grown into 20 employees, including part-time and contract workers.
The Dignity House, Mental Health Rehabilitation Facility has been recognised at the Central America Prestige Awards for its use of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) while treating patients.
“Our best practice approach from our dedicated staff further allow us to gain reputation. Hence, today our programme is supported by Financial Assistance, insurance providers and people paying out of pocket,” Mr. Darceuil told SheHUB.tv.
To learn more about Dignity House, click here.
