International Medical Corps is one of the few global emergency response organizations with the capacity to address the immediate psychosocial needs of communities struck by disaster and to help those with preexisting mental disorders.

A chronic shortage of qualified, specialized mental health workers in many countries is compounded in humanitarian crises, when the availability of health staff is often even more limited and health facilities may be damaged or hard to access. Improving access to sustainable and quality mental health care requires training, outreach efforts and effective communication and consultation between all those involved. This approach includes working with first responders, community health workers, primary healthcare staff, mental health specialists and government stakeholders.

International Medical Corps has extensive experience in training and building the capacity of professionals—including general healthcare workers, social workers and psychologists—to provide more-specialized services at the community level. We support mental health services at all levels of care. Raising awareness of the principles of psychological first aid (PFA) among staff and volunteers responding to crisis is an integral part of our emergency response. Integrating mental health into primary healthcare, to expand access to quality mental health services in humanitarian settings, is another cornerstone of International Medical Corps’ programming. For the longer term, we support the development of national mental health care policies and work to boost capacity of local organizations to provide MHPSS services.

Our Response

Those experiencing mental health issues often have complex needs that require the attention of specialists from more than one discipline. To address such challenges, International Medical Corps has developed a mental health case-management approach that meets multiple needs, such as health and safety, while working with individuals on goal-setting and connecting them with available resources to support them as they move toward better functioning.

Recognizing and treating psychosocial issues at the community level strengthens a community’s ability to support those with pre-existing mental disorders, particularly in the context of an emergency situation. International Medical Corps’ interventions focus on providing individual, supportive counseling by case managers, and promoting community awareness by teaching community residents about common mental health problems, how to reduce stigma and how to support those affected by mental health issues.

Highlights

This chapter discusses how social workers can and should play an integral role in the holistic delivery of clinical and community care for refugees living with emotional distress and mental health conditions.

This paper proposes a framework for comprehensive, collaborative and community-based care for accessible mental health services in low-resource settings.

This free online course is for first responders and service providers who may interact with people affected by a crisis. It covers supportive listening, normal stress responses, positive coping mechanisms and the importance of linking people to support. It is available in Arabic, English, French, Spanish and Ukrainian.

Assessment reports:

International Medical Corps has launched educational booklets about common mental health issues as part of its wider effort to promote mental health care among Syrian refugees and host communities in Lebanon. The booklets have been used in other Arabic-speaking countries as well and translated into Ukrainian.

We provide culturally appropriate mental health and psychosocial support to individuals, families and communities.

Our Community of Practice calls with technical staff in our country teams prioritize sharing experiences and lessons learned across programs.

Back to Mental Health & Psychosocial Support overview