The exercise and sport programme is aimed at improving the physical and mental health of people treated at the mental health resources.
The programme, which began in 2021 at Son Llàtzer Hospital, already involves 88 people from hospitals and day centres on the islands.
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Health starts up a sports programme
The Regional Minister of Health, Manuela García, presented this morning at Can Misses Hospital a programme of sport and physical exercise aimed at users of the different mental health resources, as part of a new therapeutic strategy in this area.
With the incorporation of the 18 patients from Can Misses Hospital into this sport and mental health programme, which was first implemented at Son LLàtzer Hospital in 2021, and which was later joined by Inca Hospital and the Sant Miquel and Sa Platja Gran day centres in Menorca, 88 users with some type of mental pathology have now benefited from the programme.
During her speech, councillor García pointed out that ‘patients with mental health problems need multidisciplinary treatment and this programme is a different, complementary strategy, which, added to the usual therapies, supports and completes the therapy of people with different mental health pathologies and people with addictions, in their complicated and often difficult process of rehabilitation and social reintegration’.
The Physical Exercise and Mental Health Programme is carried out with the collaboration of the Sport2live association and the sponsorship of Otsuka-Lundbeck, and is aimed at improving the physical and mental health of people attending the Mental Health Day Hospital. The programme involves graduate physical educators and aims, in the words of Daniel Roca, representative of Otsuka: ‘an optimal therapeutic strategy in mental health together with sporting activity is essential to improve the functionality of patients’ lives”.
These programmes allow those affected to improve their physical condition, self-esteem, self-confidence levels, the ability to face and achieve goals -both sporting and personal- as well as to acquire social skills, by sharing the activity in a group.
People with severe mental health problems have a higher prevalence of developing cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes or metabolic syndrome, caused by multiple factors such as antipsychotic medication, sedentary behaviour, adverse health behaviours or alterations in the cardiovascular and immune system. This leads to a decrease in life expectancy of between 10 and 20 years compared to the general population.
In these cases, modification of lifestyle factors, such as increased physical activity and improved diet, are associated with a reduction in health problems. According to World Health Organisation recommendations, the minimum recommended dose would be 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week.
The new Directorate General for Mental Health has defined as one of its priorities a firm commitment to innovative strategies that accompany the usual therapies, such as the inclusion of physical exercise in the different resources aimed at caring for people with mental health disorders.