The Tarana Hotel, a regional pub in New South Wales, is currently addressing mental ill-health in a unique and creative way.
Throughout July and August, the Rural Adversity Mental Health Program (RAMHP) is hosting free storytelling and songwriting workshops at the pub.
Run by Arts OutWest and Abby Smith from regional country/folk/jazz duo Smith and Jones, the RAMHP project is aimed at enhancing wellbeing and cultivating social connections.
The project is collecting personal stories tonight and the following two Fridays from 4:30 to 6:30pm.
Immediately following the story collection there will be two Fridays of songwriting sessions, with the aim of turning the results into a “musical snapshot of the region”, which will be launched in late October.
RAMHP has been focusing on supporting remote, rural and regional communities since 2007, with the goal of increasing services and information to people in these areas.
The National Rural Health Alliance released a fact sheet in 2021 reporting that while rural and remote Australia had a similar reported prevalence of mental health issues to major cities (around 1 in 5), access to support services for people in remote areas was considerably more limited.
This results in poorer outcomes for those who live further away from cities.
However, people living in rural areas tend to report higher levels of life satisfaction and wellbeing compared to those in major cities, reflecting the positive aspects of rural life, in strong community ties, active civic engagement, and supportive networks among neighbours and friends.
This highlights the importance of these regional programs.
The project at Tarana Hotel is supported by the regional financial co-operative Family First Bank.
More information on this project can be found at https://www.ramhp.com.au/ramhp_events/brewing-ballads-being-well/.
