| Speak Out - an article in the Health Service Journal |
 While football teams have often sent fans into the depths of despair, Malcolm McClean says they are just the vehicle to reach depressed young men...One of the most unusual mental health job advertisements of the year appeared recently - a "goal scorer" was required by Macclesfield Town football club. Glancing at the lower reaches of the third division, one could be forgiven for thinking this was a measure of desperation; a search for a mental health professional who is good in the box. In fact, it was looking for someone who can think outside of the box, and is an important illustration of the way football can transform health. The "goal scorer" refers to a three-year post leading the "It's a Goal!" project, funded by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. It is a personal development programme built around football metaphors and scenarios, designed to help people suffering from depression and low self esteem. Aimed paricularly-though not exclusively-at men aged 16-35, it is intended to develop tactics, techniques and strategies to deal with challenges they face when they become depressed. There are over 7,000 suicides every year in the UK, and it is estimated that 75 per cent are a consequence of depression. Spending by the NHS on antidepressants is now £381m per year. Meanwhile, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence recommends that doctors do not prescribe antidepressants to those with mild depression because they do not work as well as alternatives such as nutrition, counselling and exercise. The case of semi-professional footballer Nic Coley shows how hard it can be for young men to open up about mental health. Playing for Tamworth in the Nationwide Conference, suffering from clinical depression, he was discovered in tears with a nosebleed and a pounding headache by a team-mate. When asked what was wrong, he panicked and said the first thing that came into his head - cancer. The deception gathered momentum as supporters rallied round and raised money. When he confessed to being clinically depressed, he was banned from the ground. It is a tough world where it is considered OK to have cancer, but not a mental health problem. The Laureus programme at Macclesfield Town is an attempt to do something about this, partly by running a programme in a very public setting - a stadium. And it is stadiums, often located in areas of high deprivation, which offer a great opportunity for the worlds of health and football to combine. Macclesfield Town has recognised that, with a little imagination, its stadium could become a valuable asset for the community. Proposals to develop a £4m complex for health, sport, enterprise, education and community have been praised by sports minister Richard Caborn. It is time for health bodies, particularly primary care trusts, to engage actively in this idea. Early in the new year, the National Primary and Care Trust Development Programme is to hold a seminar on this theme, just as Laureus reports to the Football Association on a study it commissioned on the concept's potential impact on health. Malcolm McClean is project director for the Laureus "It's a Goal!" programme. Published in the Health Service Journal on Thursday 18 December 2003 and reproduced here with their kind permission. |
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