Mental illness affects not only the individual but all who are close to the person, in particular, family members. As the focus of care tends to be directed towards the one who is ill, family and friends are often left to cope without a great deal of support.
With mental illness, family or Carers are faced with confusing behaviour from their loved one, often coping alone for an extended period of time before a diagnosis can be made and assistance sought.

Balgartnie Centre provides a variety of Carer support and Respite.

HBOS - This can take the form of home visits to families/Carer's addressing needs such as assisting in navigating the pathways in the mental health system, counseling, respite options, advocacy, liaising between clinical and non clinical services and 'time out for a cuppa'. Each family is given Carer Packs which have relevant information for services in this region. Carers are also given a Help Sheet to assist them when needing to have verbal dialog with clinical services in times of crisis.

Carer Social Groups - offer an opportunity to meet with others who are in a similar situation, or who have already faced a similar experience. They offer a chance to discuss issues with others as family and friends may have difficulty understanding.

When needs are identified, the Balgartnie Centre can also facilitate a ‘PATS’ Program:
'Paying Attention To Self' is an informal peer support group for teenagers who have a parent with a mental illness. The PATS program focuses on

• understanding a parents mental illness
• how to deal with their own emotional issues such as anger and self esteem
• provide options to teenagers in caring for their own mental health such as exercise, healthy eating and having friends.

Games and other fun activities are used to inform and educate teenagers about mental health issues which are relevant to them. The PATS program runs in an 8 week block on a needs basis at Balgartnie. PATS is run with qualified staff and trained peer support leaders.

Referrals for this program have come from school social workers, Community Health Centres and Clinical Services.