Self-Harm Registry Committee
The Brain and Mind Institute (BMI) has established a Self-Harm Registry Committee (SHRC) to oversee the development of a self-harm registry at Aga Khan University (AKU), Kenya, with a view towards establishing a model for a national registry. In an advisory capacity to the BMI director, the SHRC will guide BMI’s stewardship of the development of a self-harm registry by identifying the strengths, weaknesses and gaps related to existing self-harm care at AKU in Kenya by reviewing existing practice and records; design a relevant and culturally appropriate data capture tool for the self-harm database; develop a training curriculum for self-harm care and data capture; identify and oversee training of staff who encounter self-harm patients; oversee the monitoring and analyses of self-harm data captured in the registry; as well as periodically disseminate findings from the database to relevant stakeholders.
Key functions of the Committee are to:
- Deliberate on the importance of a self-harm registry, grounded on the immense human toll including human and financial impact.
- Examine the feasibility of setting up a self-harm registry in AKU
- Advise on the mechanisms that will be required to set up the registry
- Provide oversight on the quality and ethics of setting up the registry
- Ensure sustainability and relevant stakeholder input to the registry
SHRC Committee Membership:
The SHRC composition has been carefully thought out to balance representation of experience in mental health, suicide prevention, leadership, and governance in AKU, as well as research expertise in establishing surveillance systems, epidemiology, data analysis, implementation science. The membership also captures perspectives in public health, lived experience and medico-legal perspective.
