PSYCHOSOCIAL CARE AND SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN IN EMERGENCIES

3 Domains of Psychosocial Well-Being Individual Capacity Family and Community After presenting slide, asks participants to give examples of aspects of each of the domains and how they promote well-being, for example: Individual Capacity of a person: physical and mental health Coping abilities Position in society Ability to access resources Children: resilience, developmental stage Family and Community Functioning: Ability to engage in social roles, daily tasks Supportive family and friends Community groups Societal Culture and Values: Beliefs Values Practices that five a sense of meaning and identity Societal Culture and Values UNICEF

Potential Positive Outcomes of an Emergency on Psychosocial Well-Being Greater awareness of rights Children and communities can become more active in supporting themselves Greater access to information Change in gender roles Opportunities for social change

non-specialised supports services Focused, non-specialised supports Community and family supports What should be the focus of each level? Who should be involved at each level? What is the role of a Child Protection worker at each level? Level one: Advocate for the protection of children from violence, abuse and exploitation Advocate for delivery of humanitarian assistance in a manner that promotes well-being, including education Promote family unity and family-based care for separated children; Promoting family self-reliance Facilitate community involvement in decision-making and assistance Disseminate essential information to affected populations Level 2: Support play, art and sporting activities Provide structured groups activities for expression and the development of life skills and coping mechanisms Support children and youth friendly spaces/environments Promote meaningful opportunities to participate in rebuilding society Provide culturally appropriate guidance on how parents and family members can address their difficulties and help children Support and facilitate the establishment of parent groups/committees Strengthening community supports: Helping caregivers and educators to better cope; Help key people to support children; Teacher training on psychosocial care and support Training for health personnel; Psychosocial support for adult caregivers; Strengthen child-to-child or youth support; Resumption of cultural activities Level 3 is For children who are: struggling to cope within their existing care network; Not progressing in terms of their developmen; Unable to function as well as their peers ; n need of activities that address their psychosocial needs more directly This requires focused psychosocial support activities require trained and experienced staff. Activities may include: Case management; Psychological first aid; Counseling; Structured/facilitated play activities Level 4 may include: Traditional specialized healing (e.g. cleansing and purification rituals) Counseling (individual, family or group); Psychotherapy; Drug or alcohol treatment; Custodial mental health care Basic services and security UNICEF

Overuse of the word ‘trauma’ can be: Inaccurate (only an extremely small percentage of the population will have PTSD) StigmatizingOveruse of the word ‘trauma’ can be: Counterproductive to healing Encouraging a passive victim identity Deflecting attention away from the broader social context