Mental Health & Psychosocial Support:How you can HelpA Pocket Guide from

A young refugee in Northern Uganda. This picture was taken by a fellow refugee child participating in an International Medical Corps art therapy programme called Photo Camp. (Photo: IMC / Elisa)

International Medical Corps is a global, humanitarian, non-profit organisation dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through healthcare training and relief and development programmes.

International Medical Corps aims to make a long-term improvement to the health of the world’s most vulnerable people.

That’s why one of the cornerstones of our work is mental health.

Who we are & what we do

Independent UK registered charity number 1093861

Mental illness is one of the most common non-communicable diseases in the world affecting 450 million people.

An International Medical Corps mental health worker in Indonesia (Photo: Yudi Andika)

Mental illness is one of the great invisible burdens on developing societies, accounting for four of the 10 leading causes of disability worldwide.

Yet the provision of mental health care is one of the most under-resourced and neglected health services.

In emergencies, the problem is greater still as the percentage of the population suffering severe mental disorders rises and those with pre-existing illnesses are exposed to new levels of stress.

International Medical Corps is one of the few international response organisations with the capacity to address both the immediate psychosocial needs of communities struck by disaster AND help those with pre-existing mental disorders.

Why mental health?

A Somali refugee in Ethiopia suffering from psychosis is chained by his family to stop him running away or harming himself. (Photo: David Niblock)

There is only one psychiatrist for every two million people in many low income countries - in some it is one to six million

(Photo: Sara Terry)

International Medical Corps is running the following kinds of mental health programmes across 8 countries (Chad, Ethiopia, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Uganda).

Where and how?

Child-friendly spacesInternational Medical Corps develops any social activities that help communities rebuild social networks and foster resilience. These include Child Friendly Spaces in many post-conflict and disaster situations.

Child Friendly Spaces provide children who are living through the stresses of conflict or post conflict life or who have survived terrifying events like Earthquake or Tsunami with a safe protected carefree environment to learn and play and grow.

A welcoming stimulating atmosphere, regular routines and structured time help children to regain a sense of normality and overcome some of their problems.

Integration of mental health into primary health careIt is widely acknowledged that community based mental health services are the most sustainable, accessible and least stigmatizing way of delivering mental health care.

We work with local health care providers to help integrate mental health care services into the primary health care system and establish appropriate lines of referral to hospital-based specialist services.

An Iraqi boy plays at an International Medical Corps Child Friendly Space in the Al-Amiriya/Al-Karkh area of Baghdad. (Photo: Usama Jalel Nahee)

International Medical Corps are training local health care staff in two refugee camps in Ethiopia for Somali refugees to diagnose and treat severe mental illness. (Photo: David Niblock)

Early Childhood DevelopmentIt is now known that there are significantly greater benefits for children’s development when nutrition programmes are combined with psychosocial programmes that enhance mother and child interaction and infant stimulation.

Recognising this, International Medical Corps now run combined psychosocial / nutrition programmes in Uganda and Ethiopia.

Mothers already visiting International Medical Corps food distribution centres are now participating in mother-to-mother groups where they are taught to support their children’s development through communication and play.

Conflict ResolutionThe aim of our conflict resolution programming is to stop young people becoming susceptible to, or involved in, violence.

We do this by:

positively engaging young people in • neighbourhoods with a history of conflict

providing opportunities for social and economic • growth

establishing and supporting spaces that can • serve as sites for vocational training, recreational activities and social interaction

A mother and her child play at an early childhood development project in Uganda. (Photo: Carmen Crow)

School children from the Bab Al Tebbeneh and Jabal Mohsen areas of Lebanon paint on a wall constructed by International Medical Corps. Bab al-Tebbaneh is a Sunni district while residents of Jabal Mohsen are predominantly Alawite. (Photo: International Medical Corps)

Substance abuseAlcohol and substance abuse are major problems in many displaced and post conflict populations with devastating effects on family life including child neglect, and increased domestic violence.

For example in northern Uganda many men in the displacement camps drink because they have nothing else to do; women sell home brewed alcohol because they have nothing else to sell.

International Medical Corps addresses this in two ways: a livelihoods programme to help women develop alternative sources of income and an educational awareness and support programme to help men learn about and overcome alcohol dependence.

School outreachSchool based health care programmes are an excellent way to ensure that vulnerable children get the mental and physical health care they need.

In Jordan International Medical Corps has created an innovative school outreach programme that brings local GPs into schools with Iraqi refugees to do preventative checks on their physical and mental health and help the family access local necessary services for those that have problems.

An AA meeting in Uganda, part of International Medical Corps’ substance abuse programme. (Photo: Carmen Crow)

This picture was taken at a school in Jordan where GPs, nurses and school staff receive mental health training from International Medical Corps on how to deal with children who have evident behavioural emotional concerns. (Photo: Joseph Zakarian)

International Medical Corps has achieved a lot, but we still need your help to continue our work. You have the power to transform lives. Join our team and bring about change that lasts.

Here are some ways that you can help:

Let the people in your life know about International Medical Corps. Tell your friends and family about us and encourage your co-workers to join the campaign for self-reliance. Awareness is where change begins.

Support our programmes worldwide. A small donation helps save lives and alleviate suffering:

£10 will provide for specialised mental health services for a child severely affected by conflict and disaster

£25 provides psychosocial and nutritional support for 10 mothers and their babies

£50 provides 15 children access to Child Friendly Spaces (skills building, psychosocial and recreational acitivities) in areas affected by conflict and/or disaster

£100 will provide mental health services for 100 people at a IMC supported Primary Health Care Clinic for 3 months

Become a monthly sponsor. Donations, big or small, will make a difference and help empower the communities that International Medical Corps support worldwide.

Want to know more? Come and visit us at: www.imcworldwide.org.uk

How you can help us now

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