El Puente (Since 1957: help for patients of the Asunción psychiatric hospital. Since 1990: Rehab)

In the El Puente Psychosocial Rehabilitation Center, people with psychological problems or psychiatric disorders find a friendly and supportive environment through treatments for the individual as well as entire families as an addition to the psychiatric treatment. In an area given to SERVOME by the Asunción Psychiatric Hospital, attention is provided to 60 patients, distributed in different groups according to their needs and interests. It’s a way of supporting the work at the Psychiatric Hospital, by following up on patients who were discharged or who need constant assistance, but not hospitalization.

El Puente offers rehab activities to patients according to an individualized therapeutic plan that may include psychoeducation, training in social skills, self-care, crafts, sports, gardening, carpentry, computer classes and participation in spiritual and social activities. This Day Center receives people with different mental disorders who do not need hospitalization but rather daily therapeutic accompaniment and family and work counseling.

With the help of IMSE, EL Puente extends its services to communities throughout Paraguay thanks to a project called “Ñemongeta Kuaa”. The project consists of conversation rounds led by churches for their communities. These help to make access to mental health easier.

El Puente seeks to build a network with other institutions in the same area, in order to jointly seek new solutions for the problem of poorly attended mental health in Paraguay.

Many are the people who, since 1990, have been able to improve their quality of life and reconnect to their environment, thanks to their passage through this center, which is precisely a bridge towards greater autonomy in daily life, towards social inclusion and towards mental and spiritual healing.