International award for HSE Ascain Training and Support Services Donegal

HSE Mental Health Services Ascain Training and Support Services, which operates in Letterkenny, Carndonagh and Dungloe, has received international recognition after being awarded a coveted Gold Forum Award by the Global Network for Tobacco Free Healthcare Services.

This award recognises healthcare services that are implementing tobacco management at the highest global standards under the WHO Framework Convention for Tobacco Control.

Ascain provides recovery-focused training and one-to-one support to people living with mental ill health, helping them become more self-aware, advocate for themselves, and take active steps toward achieving personal goals. At the heart of Ascain’s mission is a commitment to creating a tobacco-free culture, both for service users and staff. 

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The award is based on strict benchmarks including the development of tobacco cessation programmes, systematic health promotion, a tobacco-free environment, ongoing monitoring and evaluation, and engagement with local and national tobacco-free initiatives.

To qualify for nomination, services must achieve a self-audit score of 126 out of 144 or higher and undergo a national validation process by healthcare auditors. The Gold Forum is the highest distinction granted by the Global Network, and only two other Irish services have previously earned it: Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda and the National Forensic Mental Health Service.

Ascain has been actively working with Health Promotion and Improvement for over a decade. All staff members have completed Making Every Contact Count (MECC) training, and Ascain is the first mental health service in Community Services Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan, and Sligo to gain official MECC implementation site status. Through this, they not only address tobacco use but also support healthier choices around physical activity, nutrition, and substance use.

Manager Gemma McLoone accepted the award at the GNTH conference in Dublin on June 26th, 2025. She praised her team, past and present, saying their daily commitment to supporting service users made the award possible.

“This award is testament to their hard work and efforts. I would also like to thank our service users for coming in to us every day, for working with us and trusting us in our efforts in helping them to make life better,” she said. She also expressed gratitude to the wider Donegal Mental Health Services, the Donegal Health Promotion Department, and the Day Services Coordination Team for their continued support.

Padraig O’Beirne, Acting Head of Mental Health Services across the region, said the award reflects how mental health services and health and wellbeing can work together to improve outcomes. “Ascain are so deserving of this award as they are a leading example of how collaboration between Mental Health services and Health and Wellbeing can help improve both the physical and mental health of our service users.”

The impact of the programme is reflected in personal stories like that of service user John Lavelle, who said, “I smoked for over 25 years and I really wanted to quit. Ascain were great and encouraged me to see the smoking cessation nurse in Letterkenny. I’m glad to say I’ve never smoked since the first meeting with them and have been off them for two and a half years now.”

The word Ascain comes from the Irish for “to migrate,” reflecting the service’s aim of helping people move toward improved circumstances and a more hopeful future.