Snapshots from the East Available to Purchase

As the European Union (EU) looks east for further expansion, we in the UK will need to form partnerships with organisations in the emerging democracies of Central and Eastern Europe in order to access EU development and innovation funds. We also have much to learn from people who have struggled to manage the transition from communism and the command economy. In the west we tend to view mental health service developments in Eastern Europe as a form of ‘catching up’. However, we should not make assumptions or be complacent. Those working for reform inside the system have been tempered in the fires of adversity and exchanges of information, ideas and friendship have been mutually rewarding for UK organisations with the vision and the humility to engage. Raluca Nica is Executive Director of the Romanian League for Mental Health. Olga Rjabova is Executive Director of the Nevsky Clubhouse in St Petersburg. Both have worked with UK organisations and are keen to go on sharing their experience with people from the UK on a partnership basis. Here are snapshots of their work.