Farmers are among the most vulnerable in terms of mental health, according to a Canadian study from the University of Guelph conducted in 2016. Agronomist, journalist and winegrower Étienne Gosselin, as well as Hélen Bourgoin, a specialist educator and former front-line worker, believe that action must be taken. They have thus developed an application which allows farmers to assess their psychological state themselves. In order to put together this application called La Bêche, the two instigators, supported by the artist Marc Séguin, are leading a crowdfunding campaign until May 29. Caribou spoke with them about this techno-social innovation project.
Text by Pénélope Leblanc
Why do we need to talk more about mental health in the agricultural world?
Hélen: Agricultural culture is a culture in itself and it is often very traditional. This area comes with a lot of pressure. We don’t want to be the generation that will stop working on the farm, for example. In addition, farmers constantly wonder how their animals are doing, their workers, what condition the machinery is in, but it is a long time before they wonder how they are themselves.
Stephen: A farm needs a lot of things to function. But what farmers need to understand is that they are the most valuable asset on the farm. In Quebec, we are still ahead of agricultural mental health. In particular, we have row workers who offer psychosocial services in the countryside and a respite home in Sainte-Hyacinthe. Except that all these tools put in place are used to intervene; something is missing upstream to prevent and it is, among other things, from this observation that I had the idea of developing an application.
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Etienne Gosselin
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Helen Bourgoin
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Precisely, why go through an application to set up a prevention system?
Hélen: With the pandemic, we have seen the virtual world explode. It is therefore a great window to exploit that will allow us to act, to intervene, and above all, before something regrettable happens. Because unfortunately there are people who do not consult, who do not speak and who do not end up killing themselves …
Stephen: The application will be used in particular to ask oneself: am I happy, optimistic, stressed? How are my finances, my relationship with my children? La Bêche will also be used to send strategies, testimonials from people who have lived similar stories, in order to show users that they can get by even if they face significant challenges. It will be an easily accessible life jacket.
“It is a distribution channel that will also allow us to share lots of stories of solidarity to” recreate “the network.”
Etienne Gosselin
Hélen: It is also a tool that will be useful for referring farmers to the right places. Often they just don’t know what resources are available to them.
| The state of Canadian farmers in a few figures … | |||
| • 45% have a high level of stress | |||
| • 35% suffer from depression, or more than one in three farmers | |||
| • 31% believe that seeking professional help could stigmatize them | |||
| • Less than 50% believe industry has adequate mental health support | |||
| Source: Farmers Need, Want Mental Health Help: Survey – a study conducted by Professor Andria Jones-Bitton in 2016 |
What kinds of experts will be attached to the project?
Hélen: There will be two categories. The first will bring together agricultural experts who speak in a language that farmers know. Then the second category will include mental health experts. People in the agricultural sector know the reality of the environment. They know that everything is different in the countryside. They will therefore establish a bond of trust with the farmers so that they feel understood in their efforts, which is not always the case at the moment.
At the moment, the application is still in development, it evolves over the days, but we know what we want to do and we know that there will be notifications to remind farmers to self-regulate. to evaluate, to take breaks, to breathe, then, above all, it must be simple, concrete and effective.
Do you think farmers are ready to talk about mental health?
Stephen: I think it’s still taboo to talk about mental health and maybe even more in the culture of agriculture. They are concrete people, so the application will have to be concrete too, as Hélen explained.
Hélen: Despite this, we have the impression that things have changed in recent years. It’s just that farmers are so used to doing everything on their own that it can be difficult for them to ask for help.
➤ To participate in the crowdfunding campaign, until May 29: it’s here.
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:quality(85)//cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/663YASBMIBF6HGMNB2MKLU7P5U.jpg "After the crossing in the WhatsApp group, Horacio Cabak was in Controversy at the bar and spoke of the conflict with Flavio Azzaro")
