Over the last eighteen months, staff working with the HSE Health Promotion & Improvement have been busy developing a collection of health & wellbeing podcasts in partnership with a wide range of support agencies from the statutory, community and voluntary sector.
Offaly Talks, Longford Talks, Westmeath Talks, Kildare Talks and Laois Connects Podcasts have been created as a wellbeing resource for anyone experiencing a personal difficulty and need some guidance and support to resolve it. So far, there has been 58 podcasts recorded, featuring 116 guests, representing over seventy different agencies, giving fascinating insights into the experience and knowledge gained by staff supporting individuals and communities with personal difficulties. An example of topics include parenting issues, domestic abuse, men’s health, addiction, mental health recovery and employment related issues (to name a few).
Former Governor of Mountjoy Prison and author of ‘The Governor’, John Lonergan, and best-selling author of ‘Cotton Wool Kids’ and Counsellor & Psychotherapist Stella O’Malley, have both contributed to these podcasts, sharing their insights on parenting, personal development and community issues.
Emer Smyth, Health Promotion and Improvement Manager, Health and Wellbeing, CHO 8 Midlands Louth Meath said, “it is important that people living in our communities are aware of the large array of supports that exist to help them to stay well and to work their way through difficulties that happen as is normal in life. The conversations like the work in health promotion are broad in range and topic and give a flavour of the work our team are involved in every day”
Karen Heavey, Health Promotion & Improvement / Health & Wellbeing Manager for Dublin South, Kildare, West Wicklow Community Healthcare said “These are really useful podcasts that capture a conversation about the work across a broad range of Health Promotion Health and Wellbeing topics. It puts a human voice on the valuable services delivered in communities and opportunities to avail of and link in with these services”.
Developer and host of the podcasts, Anthony O’Prey, HSE Health Promotion Officer, said “these podcasts give our communities an opportunity to listen to the voice of support that is available to them within their locality. I would encourage everyone to listen to these conversations and share them among your loved ones; they are an invaluable resource especially during these challenging times”
Offaly Talks, Longford Talks, Westmeath Talks, Kildare Talks and Laois Connects Podcasts have been created through a collaborative partnership with HSE Health Promotion & Improvement (Midlands Louth Meath CH08 and Dublin South, Kildare West Wicklow CHO7), HSE Resource Office of Suicide Prevention (Laois Offaly), Offaly Local Development Company, Laois Partnership Company, Westmeath Community Development, Longford Community Resources Clg and County Kildare LEADER Partnership. To access any of these podcasts, click on the link below or search using your Spotify app.
Logos & Links
https://offalyldc.ie/individual-supports/offaly-talks-podcasts
https://www.westcd.ie/index.php/westmeath-talks
https://laoispartnership.ie/laois-connects-podcasts/