The PEMA

04/09/2026

𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗼𝗽𝗲: 𝗧𝗲𝗻𝘇𝗶𝗻 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗺𝗼

Tenzin Wangmo was a class 12 graduate when she first saw the vacancy for a matron at The PEMA Home on Facebook. At that time, she was simply looking for a job.

What caught her attention were the two words in the post “child protection”. That ignited her curiosity. A week later she applied and was selected.

“In the beginning, I thought it was a normal child care,” the 23-year-old said.

It was only after she arrived at the workplace and realised how different The PEMA Home was.
The children here, she understood, carried stories of struggle and pain. Some had experienced circumstances no child should have to navigate alone. Caring for them required more than keeping them fed, clean and safe. It required patience. Listening. Trust. And compassion.

Her first months were a learning curve. The matrons were trained and guided by the team at The PEMA Home, the helpline and other staff. Slowly, Tenzin began to understand that sometimes the smallest acts could make the biggest difference. A meal shared together or a simple “How are you?”.

The days at The PEMA Home follow a routine of school, study, meals, gardening, games, music, arts and time together. But Tenzin has learned that every child is different, and care cannot always follow a timetable.
Sometimes, the most important part of the day is simply being there.

She remembers two young children, one and three years old, who initially stayed close only to their mother and cried. Over the next three months, they started interacting with the matrons, playing in the playroom, eating with them and slowly opening up. Then they returned to their mother.

Later, when their circumstances brought them back to The PEMA Home, the children did something Tenzin has never forgotten.
“They directly gave us motherly hug.” It was a small moment. But for Tenzin, it said everything. The trust that had once taken weeks to build was now there in an instant.

“I still miss them,” she says. The children may arrive at The PEMA Home as clients, but that is not how she sees them.

“We become family and not just service provider.” And that is what makes The PEMA Home more than a place of shelter. Behind its signboard is a place where children's health, education, emotions and everyday lives are cared for. Where counsellors are available when children struggle. Where someone thinks about the school uniform, the packed lunch, the evening meal, the difficult conversation and the quiet child sitting alone.

For Tenzin, it is a place of healing and empowerment. “The safest place,” she says. “I would dare say safer than our own homes.”
The purpose, she believes, is not simply to care for children today, but to prepare them for the life ahead.

“His Majesty The King said youths are our future. And through The PEMA Home, Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen is ensuring that no youth is left behind.”

And that is the hope at the heart of The PEMA Home, that a difficult beginning does not have to determine the rest of a child's story.
Tenzin came looking for a job. Instead, she found a family to care for, and a place where, every day, care is quietly helping children believe in a future again.

𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲: Story and picture are shared with permission.

If you are struggling, you are not alone.
The 𝗣𝗘𝗠𝗔 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 is here.
𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗹-𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 1098 𝗼𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝘁 17123239 𝘃𝗶𝗮 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗔𝗽𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺

02/09/2026

𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 & 𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀
A two-day Coordination and Planning Workshop on Mental Health and Wellbeing Services during emergencies was successfully held on 27 and 28 August 2026, bringing together key stakeholders from the Psychiatric Department, Protection Services, Helpline Services, Schools, RENEW, and Nazhoen Lamtoen.
The workshop focused on identifying gaps, clarifying roles, and strengthening coordination to ensure a more prepared and coordinated response to mental distress, wellbeing and protection concerns during emergencies.
Since 2025, mental health and wellbeing have been integrated into the broader disaster response framework in coordination with the Department of Local Governance and Disaster Management Building on this progress, the workshop explored practical ways to strengthen SOPs, referral pathways, communication, operational tools, and emergency preparedness.
The workshop concluded with a closing session graced by Dasho Dechen Wangmo, Head of PEMA Secretariat, reaffirming the importance of collective preparedness and coordinated action in ensuring timely support during emergencies.
Together, we prepare stronger.
Together, we respond better.
BBS
Kuensel
The Bhutanese


01/09/2026

31/08/2026

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐄𝐌𝐀 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 seeks to share words that encourage reflection, inspire hope, and spark positive change through the wisdom of diverse voices and a wide range of sources. As you scroll and come across these posts, and even if it strikes a chord with a single person, we will have fulfilled our purpose.

Just as the lotus is born from mud, but is free of stains, our mind is shrouded in emotions but its true nature is untainted. Let us reach out for the lotus within!

30/08/2026

29/08/2026

As we continue with our series of QnA, Dasho Dechen Wangmo explains about The Pema’s intervention and programmes, while elaborating about ways to encourage people to come forward and seek help.

Our work covers the full continuum of prevention, early identification, crisis response, treatment, recovery and reintegration.

https://kuenselonline.com/news/mental-health-is-a-national-responsibility-not-the-pemas-alone

28/08/2026

𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗼𝗽𝗲: 𝗧𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗽

There was a time when Tshering’s life was defined by addiction. His days revolved around substances, and the person he once knew himself to be seemed to disappear beneath them. Today, he looks back on that time with a sense of acceptance because his story did not end there.

Through the resolute vision of Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen and the dedicated team at Mitshey Yarab Lamzang, PEMA’s rehabilitation centre, Tshering was given the chance to start again.

“Mitshey Yarab Lamzang did not simply teach me how to give up substances,” says the 39-year-old from Bjoka, Zhemgang. “It taught me how to reclaim my life.”

Inside the centre, recovery became more than learning to live without drugs. It became a deeply personal journey of finding himself again. His dignity, self-respect, discipline, and belief that his life could still have meaning. Tshering also discovered that recovery could not simply mean walking away from his past. He needed something to walk towards, and the centre helped him find that too.

During his rehabilitation, he completed a five-day Social Entrepreneurship Programme, followed by a 10-day Digital Skilling Programme and a 90-day training in Generative AI Fundamentals and Applications.

In just eight months, he earned certificates that he had never imagined possible after he left education once he completed Class 12. To others, they may look like pieces of paper. But to Tshering, they are “milestones carved into the landscape of recovery”.

Today, he looks forward to joining more De-Suung Skilling Programmes. His plan is to spend the next two years or so in Thimphu, helping his friends through their own recovery journeys, before returning to his village to use his skills and contribute in whatever way he can. The opportunity to serve as Dessung, which is vital part of the aftercare program was a gift from His Majesty to the facilitate recovery and reintergration.

Tshering describes Mitshey Yarab Lamzang as a “sanctuary of transformation.” It was there that he rediscovered faith and began to see his past differently. He learned that his experience with addiction did not have to remain a source of shame. It could become a source of empathy and understanding, and a reason to reach back and help someone who is still struggling.

His past will always be part of his story. But it no longer gets to decide how that story ends.

“I was given another chance to live,” Tshering says. “Now, I aspire to become a reason for someone else to believe that beginning again is possible.”

𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲: Story and picture are shared with permission.

If you are struggling, you are not alone.
The 𝗣𝗘𝗠𝗔 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 is here.
𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗹-𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 1098 𝗼𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝘁 17123239 𝘃𝗶𝗮 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗔𝗽𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺

26/08/2026

In conversation with Kuensel, Dasho Dechen Wangmo, head of Pema secretariat discusses about Bhutan’s mental health scenario and all the stories behind.

Mental health is emerging as an increasingly important public health and social concern in Bhutan. The evidence from the National Health Survey 2023, together with the growing number of people seeking mental health services from The PEMA, tells us that there are significant unmet needs. At the same time, we should be careful in interpreting the increase in reported cases. It reflects not only an increase in mental health problems but also greater awareness, improved identification, reduced stigma, and increased availability of services.

https://kuenselonline.com/news/behind-every-statistic-is-a-person-a-family-and-a-life-that-matters