The South African Institute of Child and Adolescent Mental Health

✨ A NEW CHAPTER BEGINS! ✨

Today we officially kicked off an exciting new chapter for Learn2Learn in the Eersterivier community! 💛

Thanks to Lottery funding, we welcomed four newly matriculated young people from Blackheath High School and Kleinvlei High School as our new intern facilitators.

They were proudly onboarded and trained by our existing team of four highly skilled youth counsellors - young people empowering and equipping other young people. 🌱🙌🏽

Already reaching 700 learners each year, Learn2Learn can now extend its reach to another 500 learners in Blackheath and Kleinvlei.

What an exciting day of new beginnings, opportunity and hope! We can’t wait to see where this journey takes us. ❤️✨

Here’s to the next chapter of Learn2Learn!

✨ Day 3 | Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC) ✨

And just like that, we’ve reached the final day of this training cycle — but this is certainly not the end! Our UPC journey continues. 🙌🏽

As with the previous days, today was filled with laughter, learning, interaction and meaningful discussions. We focused on where and how to find evidence-based registries for different challenges within our communities, as well as how to implement effective prevention interventions.

We explored needs and resource assessments, data collection, and the importance of using the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention to guide quality prevention work. 📚🧠

A huge thank you to National DSD and Provincial DSD for arranging this valuable training and creating an opportunity to strengthen prevention work through knowledge, evidence and collaboration. 🙏🏽

Three days down — and the learning continues! 🚀

✨ Day 2 | Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC) ✨

Day 2 certainly did not disappoint! 🙌🏽 We continued building our understanding of prevention science through engaging discussions, activities and plenty of interaction.

We explored prevention science and intervention development, critical theories in prevention, human development, motivation, human needs and theories of behaviour change.

We also delved into evidence-based prevention interventions and policies, with a focus on the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention and the importance of using evidence to guide effective prevention work. 📚🧠

Another theory-packed, energy-packed and knowledge-packed day! 🚀

✨ Day 1 | Universal Prevention Curriculum (UPC) ✨

We’ve officially kicked off our three-day Universal Prevention Curriculum course, presented by the National Department of Social Development (DSD) - and Day 1 was a great start!

The day focused on the foundations of prevention, with lots of interaction, participation, energisers and engaging activities. We explored the spectrum of substance use services, what prevention is (and isn’t), evidence-based practices, and how prevention has evolved into a science.

We also delved into the brain, its functions and its role in behaviour and substance use. 🧠

Theory-packed, energy-packed and knowledge-packed! 💡

Looking forward to what the next two days have in store! 🙌🏽

Hey everyone,

Today we’re celebrating the strength, courage, resilience, and achievements of women everywhere. Women’s Day is more than just a celebration; it’s a reminder of the huge impact women make in our families, workplaces, and communities.

Every woman has the power to inspire, lead, care, and create positive change. Your voice matters, your dreams matter, and what you do makes a difference every single day.

As we celebrate, let’s keep supporting each other, lifting each other up, and creating more opportunities where every woman can thrive. Together, we can build communities and workplaces filled with respect, equality, and hope.

Happy Women’s Day to all the amazing women out there. Keep shining, keep showing up confidently, and keep inspiring those around you. Ms Moroesi Dyalom (Social Auxiliary Worker)

💗💜 Celebrating the Strength of Women 💜💗

Today, we celebrate the incredible women of SAICAMH's women: their strength, resilience, compassion, and the difference they make every day. 🌸✨

A heartfelt thank you to our wonderful Social Auxiliary Worker, Ms. Dyalom, for this beautiful initiative and for bringing us together in pink and purple, in celebration and solidarity with women everywhere. 💕💜

To all the beautiful women who were able to join, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. And to those who couldn’t be with us, you were missed and thought of. 🌷

“A strong woman knows she has strength enough for the journey, and courage enough for the road ahead.” 💗

Here’s to celebrating one another, lifting one another, and recognising the strength in every woman. 💜🌸

Today marked the final presentation in our Substance Abuse for Educators 101 programme, proudly delivered in partnership with the Metropole East Education District.

A heartfelt thank you to the dedicated educators and management of Christmas Tinto Primary School for warmly welcoming us. It was an inspiring session where educators actively engaged throughout the presentation by participating in meaningful discussions, asking insightful questions, and showing genuine interest in the topic.

It was especially encouraging to see educators taking notes and embracing practical strategies that they can implement in their classrooms and school communities. Your commitment to supporting learners and creating safe, healthy learning environments is truly commendable.

As we conclude this series, we extend our sincere gratitude to every school, educator, and partner who made these sessions a success. Together, we are building stronger, more informed school communities equipped to identify, prevent, and respond to substance abuse challenges.

Thank you, Christmas Tinto Primary School, for ending this journey on such a positive and impactful note. 💙📚🤝

💙🤝 Stronger Together: Building Skills, Sharing Hope, Changing Lives 🌱✨

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you to Ms Porsche Gordon from the Department of Social Development for taking the time to capacitate three Helderberg Basin organisations: SAI-CAMH, Help-Me-Network, and SMART. 💙

Days like these remind us that when we strengthen organisations, we strengthen our communities. By building skills 📚, sharing knowledge 💡, exchanging ideas 🤝, and even cooking together 🍲, we grow as a collective in service of the Helderberg.

Substance abuse is a challenge that deserves our attention, collaboration, and care. 💚 Today, we all showed up with a shared commitment to learn, support one another, and move the sector forward—together. 🌍✨

Thank you to everyone who participated and contributed to making the day so meaningful. Together, we are stronger, and together, we can create lasting change for the young people, families, and communities we serve. 💙🌿

Bringing Joy Through Play and Storytelling! 🎈📚
SAI-CAMH was proud to collaborate with Badisa Outreach for a fun-filled day with the children. The day was filled with exciting balloon activities, creating smiles, laughter, and opportunities for children to connect through play.
One of our SAI-CAMH team members also shared the inspiring Kuumba story, which was written in isiXhosa, and interpreted it so the children could fully understand and enjoy it in their home language. The children were engaged throughout the storytelling session and expressed their gratitude for hearing such a meaningful and inspiring story.
Thank you to Badisa Outreach for this wonderful collaboration as we continue making a positive difference in the lives of children.