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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction of the Organization Visited: ..................................................................................................... 1

Fountain House - Institute for Mental Health .............................................................................................. 1
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 1
Present leadership of Fountain House:..................................................................................................... 1
Project Details: .......................................................................................................................................... 2
All Project’s Wards/Blocks Details ............................................................................................................ 4
Finances: ................................................................................................................................................... 4
Services and Programs for the In-Patients (Members) ............................................................................. 5
Comparison with other organizations of this kind: ...................................................................................... 7
FOUNTAIN HOUSE (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA)................................................................................... 7
Collaboration with International Organizations: ....................................................................................... 9
SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE FOUNTAIN HOUSE .................................................................................... 9
Strengths ................................................................................................................................................. 10
Weaknesses ............................................................................................................................................. 11
Opportunities........................................................................................................................................... 12
Threats .................................................................................................................................................... 13
CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................................... 13
RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................................ 14

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Introductioni of the Organization Visited:

Fountain House - Institute for Mental Health

Introduction

Fountain House has the unique distinction of being the only institute of its kind in south Asia that
offers treatment and rehabilitation services to those who suffer in silence from various kinds of
mental ailments, in addition to educational facilities for family physicians from all over the
country. Fountain house, also called as ‘Home of happiness’ the brain child of late Prof.
Muhammad Rashid Chaudhry, a legend in psychiatry, started functioning in 1971; however, it
was late Professor Haroon Rasheed Chaudhry, his illustrious son, who not only kept the flame
burning but gave the fountain house such a stature that it is now known all over the world for its
extraordinary rehabilitation services to thousands of mentally ill. It is home to mentally
challenged people. With a motto, ‘dignity in service’, primarily it is a psychological
rehabilitation center for the schizophrenics the ones who lose a touch with reality and with
inherent severe symptoms of schizophrenia. Fountain House was started in 1971 under the
governance of Lahore Mental Health Association (L.M.H.A), an N.G.O registered with
Directorate General of Social Welfare Government of West Pakistan under the Voluntary
Services Welfare Agencies Registration & Control Ordinance 1961.

Present leadership of Fountain House:

Mr. Ghias-ud-Din (Sitara-e-Imtiaz) - Member Steering Committee.

Dr. Amjad Saqib (Sitara-e-Imtiaz) - Chairman Steering Committee.

Dr. Umair Rashid - Member Steering Committee.

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Project Details:

Fountain house is further compartmentalized into various areas of concerns and ancillary centers
or projects which are as follows:

1. Institute for Disadvantaged Children, Jain Mandir, Lahore

(I.D.C - For Children)

Its main objective is to educate and provide vocational as well as technical education to the MR
children whose ages are 15 and above.All other institutions working for MRs in Pakistan, the
upper age limit to cater is 15 years.

2. Khawajasira Rehabilitation Project

(K.R.P- For Eunuchs)

This is to provide health services for neglected section of society. Around 275 eunuchs are
involved in this project by disciplining them and called them once a week for two hours to give
sessions on cleanliness. Screening session of hepatitis and HIV are also held.They are also given
stipend of Rs. 1200 per session.

3. Haroon Rashid Vocational Rehabilitation Center (H.R.V.R.C)

This is for developing vocational skills in the recuperating member, it is here note-worthy that
fountain house doesn’t name its patients as “patients” rather they are called members to generate
the sense that they are still part of our society.

4. Prof. Rashid Chaudhery Drug Rehabilitation Center (P.R.C.D.R.C)

This is for drug addicts. There is schooling and library facilities for such members. They are
engaged in creative and productive facilities i.e. games, handicraft making, painting etc.in
fountain house they focus on natural aesthetic elements as well.

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 5. Fountain House Farm, Therapeutic Community Farooqabad (F.H.F)

This is for better recovery of patients; through agro based activities for those who have
agriculture or rural background by giving them occupational therapy; as well as, through
providing them aesthetically appeasing and serene place.

Fountain House Farm (Farooqabad, District Sheikhupura) is another land mark in the history of
Fountain House.The agricultural farm was started in November 1982 when possession of 25
Acres of land was allotted to LMHA on permanent lease.At present 37 members are residing at
the Farm while bedding capacity is around 45.Members, there, are engaged in different activities
such as;

 Growing Vegetables,
 Crops,
 Gardening,
 Fish & Poultry Farming,
 Dairy & Cattle Farm,
 Teddy Goat Farm
 Green Tunnel Farming

(A recently established section in the Agro therapy Unit which is producing off season vegetables
successfully)

In addition to Art & Craft training classes there Psychotherapy& Agricultural therapy go side by
side at the Farm. Members are provided with recreational facilities as well by arranging
Barbeque for them. Sports room is also available for them where they play table tennis and
carom board.State of the art treatment services are provided to the members by the Full Time
Physician, visiting psychiatrists and paramedical staff. Rehabilitation centre for drug addicts in
collaboration with Richmond fellowship of society of Pakistan is established there.

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All Project’s Wards/Blocks Detailsii

PROJECT WARDS / STATUS / BEDDING Total

NAME & BLOCKS / REQUIREMENTS CAPACITY /
LOCATION FACILITY BENEFICRIES
Fountain House Saddique Block General Block 110 203
LAHORE
(Male Wings) Ahmad Block Semi Private Block 24

Hamza Block Semi Private Block 18

Rasheed Block Semi Private Block 18

Begum Riffat Ghais Private Block 16

ud Deen Block
(B.R.G)
Royal Kingston Private Block 17
Rehabilitation
Center (R.K.R.C)
Fountain House General Block General Block 52 102
LAHORE
(Female Wings) Amna Block Semi Private Block 32

Zakia Block Private Block 15

Emergency Room -- 03

Finances:iii

According to the management of fountain house, yearly expenditure of the organization, on

average, is Rs. 8 million; out of which approximately 3.5 million rupees are given by the
provincial government as grant. Monthly expenditures are Rs. 12 lac while per patient
expenditure is Rs. 26,000. Financial needs are fulfilled by philanthropist contributions and
annual fund raising dinner where ticket is sold for Rs. 10,000 per person.

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Most of the staff working there either works voluntarily or on nominal wages. Volunteers mostly
belong fields of medicine, fine arts, social sciences especially those related to psychology and
sociology. With 100% occupancy of beds at both the facilities presses the financial needs even
further.When management was asked about going for public private partnership, they told to
have plans in this regard but they mentioned previous failures in this regard on account of
government’s lack of empathy.

They reported to have an HR department and marketing department but they admitted to not
have gone wide enough on media as Edhi or Akhuwat have.

Services and Programs for the In-Patients (Members)

 Boarding and Lodging (300 including 200 male & 100 female members)
 Treatment facilities
 Prevocational Training
 Supported Psychotherapy
• Spiritual Therapy
• Group / individual therapy
• Cognitive Behavior therapy
• Vocational therapy
• Music therapy
• Art & Drama Therapy
• Gymnasium therapy
• Sports
 Recreational programs
 Library (including books on mental health and others)
 Prof. Rashid Chaudhry memorial auditorium
 Job placement

Blocks of Fountain House

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  Siddique Block
 Rasheed Block
 Begum Riffat Ghiasud Din Block
 Royal Kingston Rehab Centre
 Ahmad Asrar Block
 Hamza Block
 N.N. Wig Occupational Therapy Unit
 Amna Block (Female wing)
 Zakia Block (Female wing)
 Institute for Disadvantaged (Gifted) Children

Daily Activities at Fountain House

• Fajr Prayer and Dars e Quran

• Morning Assembly
• Working Units (vocational therapy)
• Art & Psycho Drama therapy session
• Psychotherapy Sessions
• Family Counseling
• Group Therapies
• Gymnasium & evening sports
• Supportive Employment Program (SEP)
• Transitional Employment Program (TEP)

Other Facilities

• Teaching Units
• Hamza, Rashid, Amina & Riffat Ghais-ud-Din Block
• Case Conferences
• Ongoing Pharmacological Research

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 • Cognitive Behavior Therapy
• Woodwork Unit
• Handicrafts
• Clay Unit
• Embroidery Unit
• Ceramics Unit
• Sewing & Knitting Unit
• Outpatient Unit (OPD)
(From Monday to Saturday by Visiting Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Social Workers,
Gynecologists, Skin Specialist and Eye Specialists)
• 24 Hours Psychiatric Emergency
• Pharmacy

Comparison with other organizations of this kind:

Though almost in every private and public hospital there happens to be a facility/ward for mental
health care and there is a hospital for mentally retarded patients; but, the concept of rehabilitation
is exclusive and unique to this very organization. Fountain house is peerless when it comes to its
philosophy and commitment to the cause. It doesn’t stand as a mental asylum for the delusional
schizophrenics rather it is like a home to them and embraces the eccentric and bizarre. Even in
government run Pakistan Institute of Mental Health there is no such concept of vocational
training and occupational therapy. We can also see disparity in infrastructure and staff as there
are 750 beds and around 74 medical officers while in Fountain House there are only 400 beds
and 4 medical officers. But still Fountain House is making efforts to make its members
productive part of the society after treatment and recuperation.

FOUNTAIN HOUSE (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA)

Fountain House, situated at 425 W, 47th Street, New York (NY 10036) is a model that can be
taken in to consideration for the purpose of comparative study.

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Based in New York with state of art facilities and equipped with latest technology, the Fountain
House is serving to the best of its abilities. The Fountain House follows the same nomenclature
of “Members” and “Staff”. However, as opposed to Single Unit system of Lahore based Fountain
House; the American setup has been divided into various units, namely:

 Communication Unit
 Culinary Unit
 Education Unit
 Employment Unit
 Horticulture Unit
 Reception & Membership Unit
 Research Unit

The Fountain House (New York) furthermore inculcates in its annual program a mechanized
schedule of Trainings that are provided to the Members. Members are grouped into various
segments depending upon their age and conditions requiring specific treatment.

Various programs being run by the Fountain House (New York) are as under:

 The Units
 Education
 Employment
 Housing
 Research
 Wellness
 Young Adults

However, if the same is compared with the Lahore based Fountain House; there is absence of
such programs which is normally attributed to lack of funds. However, if the circumstances are
critically analysed, there exists absence of adequate human resources and an effective
management system.

On the financial side, Fountain House (New York) is generating their funds primarily from
Individual Contributions & Fund Raising Events. Secondary sources of funding include Donors

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and Investment Income. While making a comparison, there is no concept of raising funds via
Investment Income in the Lahore based project. Moreover, the transparency of reporting funds is
a major issue. The New York based Fountain House published its annual financial statements,
whereas there is no such practice in the Lahore based facility.

Collaboration with International Organizations:

It is collaborated with:

 World Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation (WAPR)

 World Psychiatric Association (WPA)
 World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH)
 South Asian Forum (SAF)
 Indo Pak Punjab Psychiatric Society (IPPPS)
 International Bureau for Epilepsy (IBE)
 SAARC Psychiatric Federation (SPF)

The Message of Fountain House is:

Community Participation Needs

• Recognition
• Devotion
• Commitment
• Sustainability

SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE FOUNTAIN HOUSE

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When it comes to the organizations that depend on the charity and donations rose from the
society the foremost question is that of the sustainability of the organization. No organization can
depend upon the expected money. It needs to have alternative sources of revenue at its disposal
as well in order to carry out the mission. In doing the SWOT analysis we have tried to use the
Fountain House as a case study that can be used to understand the potentials and limitations of
similar organizations. Since our country has a large number of NGOs like this we believe that
our findings may also hold good for them as well. This, however, in no way means that we are
trying to generalize the analysis that we did when we visited the Fountain House.

The SWOT analysis is as follows:

Strengths

1. Due to the credibility and the popularity of late Dr. Haroon Rashid, the former director
of the Fountain House, in the academic circles of Pakistan, the Fountain House has
established significant links with many departments of various universities of the country.
The departments of Psychology, Social Work, Psychiatry and even Sociology of many
leading universities of Lahore send their students to Fountain House to carry out research
and social work. This not only brings a much needed volunteer force to the organization
but it also help spread the message. This vital connection also helps the Fountain House
in its objective of training teachers, students and clinical psychologists to improve their
skills.

2. The Fountain House is housed in a very prime location which is near to the old Lahore,
and due to Metro Bus Services it is now connected to other suburban parts of Lahore. We
believe that this location is an asset in itself. When we visited the Farooqabad branch of
the Fountain House the first weakness we found was its remoteness. While the
Farooqabad’s Fountain House could cater to the needs of the rural population of the

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 adjacent areas, because of the lack of advertising it goes virtually unnoticed. The Lahore
branch therefore has this advantage of easy access and lesser need of advertisement.

3. The systems have been developed and they are in place. The experience and the
dedication of people like Dr. Haroon Rashid and Dr. Amjad Saqib have put in place a
workable model that is giving results. The patients are not treated like patients. They are
called, ‘members’ to give them a degree of respect that is not usually associated with the
people suffering from mental disorders. On our visit we were amazed to see that the
members were kept free and they were not locked up in their rooms. Unlike the normal
mental house chains were not used to keep inmates in check. Furthermore the attendance
of the staff is biometrically maintained and the management has developed the
mechanism of taking daily reports from the care-takers via SMSs. These states of affairs
have given birth to a very vigilant workforce that is a great asset and strength.

4. The Fountain House has a much better infrastructure. The wards are well equipped and
the living conditions for the members are very good. The public sector mental houses
cannot match the facilities that are being given in the Fountain House. This helps it
standout as an institution.

Weaknesses

1. The advertising policy is practically non-existent. It is one of the oldest welfare

organizations in the country but sadly it is not as widely known as other trusts like
ShoukatKhanam, Sahara Foundation, Edhi etc. Although the current management has
launched the PR (Public Relations) department but even they agree that they are not
focusing on it at the moment. The organization depends largely on its liaison with the
universities and its relationship with known donors. This is a serious handicap in today’s
world and in order to make this organization more viable a media policy has to be
devised as soon as possible.

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 2. In a country where the state is unable to provide adequate funds for social sectors like
health and education, and where a number of NGO’s are trying to raise their revenues
through charities, relying on the expected money from donors is not a brilliant idea.
Sooner or later the donor fatigue is bound to occur and we believe that there is a kind of
competition going on among various trusts and charitable organizations. The lack of
other sources of revenue generation is a serious weakness. There is a need of utilizing and
investing the money in some business and generate its own capital.

3. Many inmates choose to stay in the Fountain House even after they are cured, as they do
not want to go back to their families. The management at present has no way of throwing
them out especially if they are willing to pay for their stay. This makes it impossible for
the organization to cater to the needs of other needful patients. A policy needs to be
devised to check this practice.

4. The organization at present is suffering from understaffing as most of the people are not
willing to work because of the uncompetitive salaries and difficult job conditions.

Opportunities

1. Due to its links with many good departments of Psychology all over the country the
Fountain House can use the services of the finest psychologist being produced in the
country. In times of Dr. Haroon Rashid this was achieved to great extent, as he was able
to attract many young students to aspire to be like him. The name and the legacy are still
there. This provides a great opportunity for the organization to induct its future clinical
psychologists as well as managers.

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 2. The Farooqabad branch is set up in a rural area which makes is easily accessible to the
under-privileged communities. Such facilities, if utilized properly, can be a great
opportunity for the organization to reach out to the poor people of the society.

3. It was observed that members of Fountain House made beautiful paintings, artifacts,
embellished the glasses and vases with flowers, which is a potential underutilized. The
collection can be sold in market or to the people through exhibitions on large scale which
can also generate revenue.

Threats

1. Dr. Amjad Saqib, the founder and chairman of Akhuwat, who is associated with more
than dozen such organizations, currently heads the organization. Although no one can
doubt his potential as a leader and dedication as a social worker but too much reliance on
him is a serious threat. Not only does it mean that the leadership is occupied elsewhere
but it also means that there is a lack of mechanism for grooming internal leadership. Had
there been any system the organization would not have looked towards Dr. Amjad after
the sad and untimely demise of Dr. Haroon. Lack of such a system is a serious threat
looming over the Fountain House.

2. Other charities with strong PR policies are reaching to the general public in a better way.
Their dominance takes a significant share of revenue that could come to the Fountain
House. It was observed by our team that unlike many popular NGO’s like Shaukat
Khanam, Fatimid Foundatin and Sahara, that keep their donation boxes in many famous
outlets and departmental stores, Foundation House has no such program. If proper
attention is not given to this area this may result in a serious threat in the future.

CONCLUSION

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Fountain House, operating in Lahore and Farooqabad, with a collective capacity of 500, is
providing the community special facilities to the mentally affected/disabled segment of society.
The concept was adopted from the similar American based facility. However, implementation in
Pakistan has given a new dimension to the lives of many. From the friendly environment to the
state of art provisions in terms of medical, recreational and other facilities, fountain house is a
model modern setup. The way technical education is being provided alongside other activities is
enabling the “members” to discover their hidden talents and follow a path which leads them to
becoming a productive member of society. Although, government funding is meager and staff to
“member” ratio is low, but the commitment of Fountain House towards the people being served
there is commendable. The funding and dedication of those in command are exemplary and are
worth appreciation.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. At the time of admission of the “Members” to the Fountain House, an agreement must be
drawn with the family attendants, whose terms may be:

a. The family will pay visit to the fountain house, at least once in a month.
b. When the member is declared “rehabilitated” and capable enough to be
incorporated in the society, it will be binding on the family to take back the
“member”.

2. The staff to member ratio is very low. It should be increased to the levels of national and
international standards. It could be resourced by shunting funds from maintaining
infrastructure to human resource management. Moreover, the employees must be given
remunerations according to their market value, so that they can work professionally with
adequate job satisfaction.

3. A proper transparent accounts system should be maintained and publicized that is

accessible to the donors because a large number of donors contribute anonymously, a

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 separate account under the head of “Anonymous Donors” must be established. So that
their contributions are also checked.

4. A robust advertisement strategy must be adopted for raising the funds, which invokes
electronic and print media. For this purpose, “the Media and Marketing Department”
should be reinvigorated with innovative and highly qualified professionals. Further, an
organization cannot be run on donations infinitely. Self sustainability on commercial
basis through innovative marketing of products produced by the members is highly
recommended. The artifacts created by the members can be sold at much higher prices on
auction to make them “self-reliant”.

5. Proper task force should be made to follow the donors and government officials to
achieve the promises and commitments made.

6. Awareness in the society to treat the recovered persons as normal members of the society
not the special ones.

7. Active media campaigns should be launched so that people get to know about the work
and structure of Fountain House.

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