The Finnish Association for Mental Health is now MIELI Suomen Mielenterveys ry (MIELI Mental Health Finland)

MIELI Mental Health Finland, MIELI ry is a national non-governmental organisation with 56 local associations and 32 other organisations. MIELI ry employs 140 people and has 4000 volunteers. The association promotes the mental health of children and adolescents, adults and the elderly. In addition, the operations include suicide prevention, operation of the SOS Crisis centre in Helsinki and coordination of the national crisis centre network of 22 crisis centres around Finland.  

The mental health promotion work of MIELI ry focuses on strengthening the mental health skills of citizens and professionals working in various different fields. The most well-known operations are the Mental Health First Aid trainings, continuing education for teachers and Let’s Talk about Children Intervention. The crisis centres offer low threshold crisis help and support on the phone, online and in groups. The Crisis helpline answers over 50 000 calls in one year. The helpline serves in Finnish, Swedish, and Arabic.  

  

Mieli.fi as the web address  

MIELI Mental Health Finland was founded in 1897. It is the world’s oldest non-governmental mental health organisation. The association was known as the Finnish Association for Mental Health since 1952. Earlier names of the association have been “Security Association for the Insane” (1897), “Health Association of the Soul” (1919) and “Association against Nerve and Mental Illnesses” (1939).  

“For all its time MIELI ry has been a reformer that has successfully been able to renew its role and purpose in the changing world. The previous name changes reflect this process of change. The previous name, the Finnish Association for Mental Health has preserved time very well, over 67 years. It is never an easy decision to give up a traditional name”, says Sari Aalto-Matturi, the Executive Director of MIELI ry.  

“However, by the years we have come to notice that the old name no longer reflects the role of the association as a national mental health promoter, advocate and developer in the changing society.” 

The MIELI brand has been in use since 2014. Later the brand has taken its place as the logo of the association. The name change process connects the brand and the name of the association. Also, the web address mieli.fi is easier to remember. The name change will not directly affect the names of the local associations. However, the majority of the local associations are considering changing their names to correspond with MIELI Mental Health Finland.  

The name change is still to be registered by the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (PRH).  

  

More information  

MIELI Mental Health Finland   

  

Sari Aalto-Matturi  

Executive Director  

+358 400 508 234 

firstname.lastname@mieli.fi

  

Eila Ruuskanen-Himma 

Director of Communications 

+358 400 770 949  

firstname.lastname@mieli.fi

  

Mental health can be strengthened – mieli.fi