Training and research project at west clinic
The pilot psychoeducational training and research project was started at the Daspoort Clinic for parents with young children and adolescents.
A new training and research project has kicked off at a clinic west of Pretoria.
The pilot psycho-educational training and research project was started at the Daspoort Clinic for parents with young children and adolescents, said principal investigator of the transfer of positive parenting skills programme Debbie Mervitz.
“Parents and their children are distinguished as parent-child pairs and trained in consistent behaviour techniques that sustain positive relationships, by monitoring and targeting positive and negative behaviours,” said Mervitz.
She said the psycho-educational training was offered on Mondays, over two sessions, with a feedback session designed to take place eight weeks after the conclusion of the second session.
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“Research questionnaires are completed by the parent-child pairs, after each session, that enables the researcher to direct appropriate intervention measures, per case.”
Mervitz said the questionnaires were evaluated against the intervention measures to provide much-needed sources of research data.
“The concluded research, via this pilot study, will add to the scarce body of knowledge currently available on bio-psychosocial studies,” she said.
“Holistic psycho-educational intervention concerning integrative engagement with a person’s biological, psychological and social structure provides the necessary skills to develop impulse-control, modulate emotional expression and subdue self-gratification.”
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She said this has been known to ensure improved mental, physical, social and educational outcomes.
The psycho-educational training programme was a community outreach initiative open to all parent-child pairs able to access the Daspoort Clinic on Mondays from 08:00 to 12:00.
The Daspoort Clinic, located in Market Street, opened its doors on 7 August 1964.
The clinic started as an initiative of the University of Pretoria students with the purpose to support the local community and to gain practical work experience.
Medical students see patients with the support and supervision of a volunteer medical doctor. Daspoort Clinic is essentially a clinic by students for students and the community.
On the first evening of its opening, four patients were treated.
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The clinic was initially opened on Friday evenings from 17:00 to 22:30 and it shared a building with the municipality.
In 1967, social workers, speech therapists and physiotherapists become involved with the clinic.
The clinic was managed by a student committee and financially supported by Tuks Rag. In 2005, the clinic temporary closed due to legal and practical issues.
In 2007, the clinic re-opened with support from the Gauteng department of health supported by Tuks Rag and the faculty of health science of the University of Pretoria.
The clinic is open from Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 15:30.
The clinic is involved in several projects in the area.
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