The interagency guidelines on mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings: implications for social work

• Autores: Martha Bragin
• Localización: Revista de trabajo social, ISSN 0716-9736, Nº. 82, 2012, págs. 53-65
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The Interagency Standing Committee (IASC) launched a set of guidelines on mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings in 2007. Since Social Work is the profession most often called upon to provide emergency services in countries where it is established, it is important that social workers are aware of the guidelines, understand their implications, and participate in this review at all levels. In the absence of guidelines as to how community resilience should be supported, humanitarian actors have sometimes been the cause of and not the solution to, psychosocial distress. The guidelines attempt to address these issues. But to be successful they must be understood and implemented by professional social workers in partnership with indigenous community members and their representatives, who are in the best position to evaluate their quality and effectiveness. This presents a new challenge and opportunity for the profession.