To provide psychological care for people facing mental, emotional, or substance-related distress at Irish festivals, non-profit welfare service PsyCare Ireland are calling for volunteers.

The organisation was established in 2021 by Dr Kathryn Ledden and her brother, psychotherapist Michael Ledden.

With a 24-hour festival welfare service, the group assists attendees experiencing mental health issues and offers specialised crisis intervention for substance abusers. In addition, it provides substance abuse harm reduction information to the public at Irish events.

Dr Kathryn Ledden said: “I’m excited to bring my experience in psychiatry, social care, psychology and international harm reduction volunteering to Irish festival-goers. This is a much-needed service in Ireland, and I’ve experienced first-hand how it can help not only the festival-goers but also the medics and Gardaí working at festivals.”

 

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With volunteer positions still available for this year's Irish festivals, the organisation is looking for people who are willing to undergo a specific training and work at at least one festival this summer. Online applications will be accepted from 13th February to 13th April 2023. It is desirable but not required to have skills such as first aid, medical training, and counselling.

To accomplish the training, a core team of nurses, psychiatrists, and psychotherapists will hold two block courses. One is taking place online, and the other is an in-person skills day in Dublin. During the training, volunteers will learn about drug combinations and interactions to be able to educate festivalgoers and help them.

Furthermore, the training includes an educational component where the volunteers learn how to recognise when someone needs psychological attention and how to provide comfort and care to someone who is experiencing psychological difficulties.

To make a comfortable environment for people in need, the volunteers will work from softly furnished tents.

 

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PsyCare Ireland aims to establish a peer-to-peer social service for Irish festival-goers.

Psychotherapist Michael Ledden said: “We’ve seen abroad how services such as ours can help change people's attitudes to substances and how someone’s darkest hour can be transformed when they feel cared for and supported. We are the first dedicated organisation to offer this care model to gig-goers in Ireland, and we want to hear from people who would like to join our dynamic team to support others in crisis.”

Last year, PsyCare Ireland trained 40 volunteers and assisted at five festivals, including Day of the Dead and Fuinneamh. At Electric Picnic, they also held a harm reduction workshop.

The welfare's mission is to provide services to anyone in need in the festival and concert scene. The organisation hopes that by contributing, their services will no longer be needed in the future.

With the Citizens' Assembly on drug abuse, which the government is reportedly planning, Ireland hopefully continues to move towards a more health-led approach to drug use.

To learn more about PsyCare and apply as volunteer, click here.