Saint John of God Community Services Malawi is part of the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God, which strives to emulate the work and philosophy of Saint John of God. In Malawi, Saint John of God provides community-based mental health services, and services for children with a disability and or special needs.
Saint John of God Community Services operates in the city of Mzuzu and also runs mobile mental health and disability clinics in areas surrounding Mzuzu.
Programs include;
- OPD mental health services;
- Community education
- Facilitation and support
- Primary health care outreach clinics
- Residential care for people with acute mental illness
- Rehabilitation and community re-integration
- Domiciliary care within the city of Mzuzu
- Skill-based training for people recuperating from mental illness and those with other disabilities and special needs
- Community based rehabilitation for children with epilepsy and a disability
- Education for children with special needs
- Early identification and rehabilitation of children with disability [portage]
- Rehabilitation and psychosocial support for children operating in and on the streets of Mzuzu City
- Livelihood enhancement for service users and their households
- Supported employment
Through its College of Health Sciences, Saint John of God contributes to the development of mental health professionals for Malawi and the sub-region particularly in the areas of psychiatric/mental health nursing, clinical medicine [psychiatry], and Psychosocial Counselling.