Mental Health in Complex Emergencies (MHCE 13)
Course Programme
September 22rd – October 2nd 2017, Amman, Jordan.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The Mental Health in Complex Emergencies course is an intensive multidisciplinary six-day training course for mental health workers and humanitarian program staff who wish to gain insight and competency in establishing mental health or psychosocial programs in (post) conflict areas or in complex disaster settings. The course will provide practical orientation and training to equip participants to establish and organize programs in mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) and strengthen adjunct applicable skills for use in complex humanitarian emergencies and relief situations, such as needs assessments, monitoring and evaluation, understanding the humanitarian context, security, and self-care.
Through this course, students are exposed to both the most recent academic thought on mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) as well as the experiences of field practitioners in implementing MHPSS programming in complex emergencies. Students are sensitized to the non-material, social aspects of humanitarian assistance and will be able to take into account the psychosocial context when planning humanitarian assistance. This course emphasizes the well-being of the beneficiaries as considered in the 2007 'IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings' as endorsed by WHO, UNICEF, UNHCR, IFRC, and numerous local and international agencies working in the field of psychosocial assistance.
STAFF LIST
(Please refer to Page 11 for a list of faculty biographies)
COURSE DIRECTORS:
Larry Hollingworth, C.B.E.
Humanitarian Programs Director, Center for International Humanitarian Cooperation (CIHC)
Visiting Professor, Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA), Fordham University
Lynne Jones, O.B.E. FRCPsych. Ph.D.
Consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist, Cornwall Partnership Foundation NHS Trust
Visiting scientist, FXB Center for Health & Human Rights, Harvard University School of Public Health
Peter Ventevogel, M.D. Ph.D.
Senior Mental Health Officer, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
33 W. 60th St., Suite 804 | New York, NY 10023 | | | +1 212-636-6294
COURSE FACULTY
Ahmed Bawaneh
Director of Programs, International Medican Corps, Amman, Jordan
Holly Berman
Senior Regional Protection Officer (SGBV), UNHCR, Amman
Marcia Brophy, Ph.D.
Regional Senior Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Technical Advisor. Save the Children, Middle East and Eurasia
Mark Jordans, Ph.D.
Director, Department Research and Development Department, War Child Holland.
Senior Lecturer at the Center for Global Mental Health, King’s College London
Mohan Mani Lamsal
Senior Regional Community Based Protection Officer, Protection, UNHCR, Regional Bureau for Middle East and North Africa
Michelle Heidrun Engels
MHPSS Coordinator, International Medical Corps, Jordan
Willem van de Put
Co-founder and former course director of MHCE, founder and director of Culture for Change (C4C), research fellow at Fordham University and scientific expert at the Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp.
Lena Verdeli, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Psychology and Education
Director of the Global Mental Health Lab, Columbia University, New York
Inka Weissbecker, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Global Mental Health and Psychosocial Advisor, International Medical Corps, Washington DC
COURSE APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION INQUIRIES:
Ellen Bratina, International Programs Coordinator
Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA), Fordham University
Email:
COURSE ADMINISTRATION:
Course Administrator
Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA), Fordham University
Email:
COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After the course students will have an increased understanding of mental health and psychosocial needs and interventions in complex emergencies. They will also have an overview of the important guidelines, key issues, and debates within the field. They will have been introduced to the key capacities required for establishing MHPSS services in the field and had a chance to critically reflect on their own role as a humanitarian actor.
Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:
- Describe the diversity of mental health and psychosocial issues in complex emergencies and the role of cultural and contextual factors influencing MHPSS problems;
- Work with the IASC guidelines on MHPSS in Emergency Settings and use the tools in these guidelines such as the multi-layered service pyramid;
- Be familiar with appropriate training materials and curricula for use in the field, such as the mhGAP Intervention Guide and the guide for Psychological First Aid (PFA);
- Describe the principles of assessment, monitoring, and evaluation of MHPSS problems in emergency contexts including familiarity with WHO/UNHCR MHPSS assessment tools;
- Define the various roles of mental health professionals, psychosocial professionals, and nonspecialized MHPSS workers in different emergency contexts;
- Outline the principles of establishing programs in the mental health and psychosocial domains;
- Critically assess the academic literature covering MHPSS interventions in complex emergencies, with a view to continued learning and professional development.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
PRE-COURSE READINGS (sent out prior to course and also available on course Google Site)
1.Jones L, Asare JB, El Masri M, Mohanraj A, Sherief H, van Ommeren M. Severe mental disorders in complex emergencies. Lancet. 2009; 374(9690): 654-61.
2.Tol WA, Barbui C, Galappatti A, Silove D, Betancourt TS, Souza R, et al. Mental health and psychosocial support in humanitarian settings: linking practice and research. Lancet. 2011; 378(9802): 1581-91.
3.Ventevogel, P. Jordans, M.J., Reis, R. De Jong, J.T.V.M. (2013). Madness or sadness: Lay concepts of mental illness in four African communities. Conflict and Health, 7:3.
4.Rehberg, K. (2014). Revisiting therapeutic governance: The politics of mental health and psychosocial programmes in humanitarian settings. Working paper 98. Oxford: Refugee Studies Centre, Oxford Department of International Development.
COURSE STRUCTURE
The course will begin with an introduction to main concepts including a discussion about the contexts surrounding different emergency situations. Using the IASC guidelines for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings as a framework for analysis, participants will evaluate the different roles of mental health and psychosocial professionals in humanitarian emergencies and discuss the different problems and contextual obstacles that may arise in various humanitarian crises. Participants will then examine the clinical issues including severe mental disorders, substance abuse, traumatic reactions, grief and loss and sexual and gender based violence. Through lectures, discussions, and case studies participants will learn how to set up mental health and psychosocial support programs in emergencies and how to monitor and evaluate these programs. Participants will then undertake a critical examination of the main aspects and challenges confronting humanitarianism and explore cross cultural issues, human rights, and conflict resolution. The course will conclude with a full day scenario exercise.
Methods and tools used will include:
- Interactive presentations; xScenario exercises, group work, and discussions; xCombination of theoretical foundation through lecture and practical application through case studies;
- Facilitation by experienced humanitarian aid workers, psychosocial and mental health professionals, and Fordham academic faculty.
FORDHAM POLICIES AND EXPECTATIONS
Students and faculty have a shared commitment to Fordham University’s mission and values:
The course is regulated by the Fordham University discipline and grievance policies, available online at: s__resources/policies_and_procedu/10_discipline_and_gr_73049.asp
ASSESSMENT AND GRADING POLICY
All participants are expected to uphold the following classroom requirements:
1.Active participation in class and all group work assignments
2.On-time attendance of all sessions
3.Submission of original work
Credit-earning participants who have registered as non-matriculated students and submitted the required paperwork and additional fee for credit will be assessed and given a letter grade for the course. Grades will be based on participation (15% of final grade), which includes presentations and other work done in class, and on an academic paper (85% of final grade). The academic paper must be submitted in order to receive full credit for the course.
COURSE SCHEDULE
DAY 1Friday 22nd September
Welcome, Course Overview, Introduction to MHPSS
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER17.00 / Registration
17.30 – 18.30 / Welcome and Introduction
Outline of the Course: Purpose, Objectives, Structure, Administrative Briefing,Participant introductions / Larry Hollingworth
Peter Ventevogel
Lynne Jones
DAY 2: Saturday 23th September
Mental Health and Psychosocial Problems in Emergencies, Security
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER9:00-10:00 / What is an emergency
- Setting the scene
Lynne Jones
10.0- 11:00 / Humanitarian Crises and Case examples
- Experiences from various complex humanitarian emergencies
11:00-11:15 / BREAK
11:15-12:30 / Security
- How to stay safe in emergencies
12:30-1:30 / LUNCH
1:30-3:00 / Setting up Mental Health and Psychosocial
Programs in Emergencies: Part 1
- IASC guidelines (continued)
- The (different) roles of mental health and psychosocial professionals in emergency contexts
3:00-3:15 / BREAK
3:15 – 5:00 / Setting up Mental Health and Psychosocial
Programs in Emergencies: Part2
- IASC guidelines (continued)
- The (different) roles of mental health and psychosocial professionals in emergency contexts
DAY 2: Sunday 24th September
Community Based Interventions, Child protection, SGBV and PFA
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER8:30-10:15 / Principles of Community Based Protection and its relevance for MHPSS / Mohan Mani Lamsal
10:15-10:30 / BREAK
10:30-12:00 / Community Based Psychosocial Programming for Children and Adolescents in Humanitarian Settings / Mark Jordans
12:00-1:00 / LUNCH
1:00 -3:00 / Sexual and Gender Based Violence / Holly Berman
3:00-3:15 / BREAK
3:15-5:00 / PFA / Inka Weissbecker
19.30-21.30 / Mental health and Psychosocial Support in Jordan / Ahmad BawanehMichelle Heidrun Engels
DAY 3: Monday 25th October
Understanding the Clinical issues
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER8:30-10:30 / Severe mental disorders and epilepsy
Looking closely at some of the major mental health problems in the field, how they present and how they should be managed
- Severe mental disorders
- Epilepsy
- Substance abuse
10:30-10:45 / BREAK
10:45-11.30 / Severe mental disorders and epilepsy (continued) / Peter Ventevogel
11:30 – 13:30 / Grief loss and depression / Lynne Jones
12:30-1:30 / LUNCH
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER
1:30-3:00 / Grief loss and depression (Continued) / Lynne Jones
3:00-3:15 / BREAK
3:15-5:00 / Stress related disorders / Lynne Jones
DAY 4: Tuesday 26th September
Case Management, ECD, Needs Assessment, M and E
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER8:30-10:15 / Case Management / Inka Weissbecker
10:15-10:30 / BREAK
10:45-12:30 / ECD in emergencies: an example of integrated programming
- Why MHPSS integration matters
- How to do it e.g emergency nutrition and psychosocial needs
12:30-1:30 / LUNCH
1:30-3:00 / Assessment
- Why and how to do it
- Ethical issues
- Data collection
- Quantitative and qualitative approaches
3:00-3:15 / BREAK
3:15-5:00 / Monitoring and Evaluation
- How to establish comprehensive, appropriate, culturally-relevant and participatory systems of monitoring and evaluation?
DAY 5: Wednesday 27th September
Critically Examining Humanitarianism, Cross Cultural Issues, Human Rights
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER9:30-11:00 / Taking Care of ourselves / Lynne Jones/ Willem van de Put / Peter Ventevogel
11:00-11:15 / BREAK
11:15-12:30 / Cross Cultural Issues, Human Rights, Conflict
Resolution
- A critical exploration of individual, family and community based approaches and relations with indigenous healers
12:30-1:30 / LUNCH
1:30-3:00 / Critically Examining Humanitarianism
- Who/What is a humanitarian? What is the humanitarian “space”?
- What is Community?
- What is our role faced with massive human rights abuses or genocide?
- What is/should be our relationship to the military?
- How do we move from relief to development?
3:00-3:15 / BREAK
3:15-5:00 / Discussion and Debate
- Topical issueschosen by participants
Discussants: Students and
Faculty
DAY 6: Thursday 28thOctober
Scenario Exercise, Course Evaluation, Certificate Ceremony
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER8:30-10:15 / Creative and innovative approaches:
- Participants share specific innovative project experiences
10:15-10:30 / BREAK
TIME / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / LECTURER
10:30-11:00 / Introduction to Scenario Exercise / Faculty
11:00-1:00 / Scenario Exercise
1:00-2:00 / LUNCH
2:00-3:15 / Scenario Exercise presentations / Faculty
3:15-3:30 / BREAK
3:30-4:15 / Scenario Presentations / Faculty
4:15-4:30 / Certificates / Faculty
FRIDAY: FREE DAY
WEEK 2: Module 2
SATURDAY 30 Sept, Sunday 1 and Monday2 October
(Students should choose one course. All students are invited to the Guest lecture.)
Course 1 / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / FACILITATOR30 Sept – 2 Oct / Group Interpersonal Therapy for humanitarian settings / Lena Verdeli
Course 2 / TOPIC/ ACTIVITY / FACILITATOR
30 Sept – 2 Oct / Child Focussed programming / Lynne Jones and Marcia Brophy
Faculty biographies
Ahmed Y.Bawaneh, PhD (psychology) is director of Programs at International Medical Corps’ Jordan office. He has over 10 years of mental health and psychosocial programs management and technical experience in working with refugees and vulnerable populations. He has extensive experience in the fields of training, capacity building, and mental health and psychological support.He is the co-chair for MHPSS working group in Jordan.
Holly Berman,is the senior regional protection officer (SGBV) in the bureau for the Middle East and North Africa of the United High Commissioner for Refugees. She has extensive experience with UNHCR in various capacities refugee operations in Rwanda, Kenya (Kakuma), Colomba and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Marcia Brophy, Ph.Dis a Child Psychologist, and a Wellbeing and Mental Health Specialist working in the field for over 15 years. Currently she works as Senior Regional Mental Health & Psychosocial Support Advisor (Middle East & Eastern Europe) for Save the Children International.Prior to this she worked as a Mental Health Specialist for refugee communities for UNHCR based in Bangladesh; Regional Technical Advisor for ChildFund International, based in Sri Lanka, advising on their youth programmes across Asia; and as a Mental Health Training Advisor for Shanthiham, a not-for-profit charity in Jaffna, North of Sri Lanka, and for the Sri Lankan Government’s Department of Health. Whilst in the U.K. Marcia worked for a range of NGOs, national and local government, and the think tank Young Foundation for four years, on designing and delivering innovative practical wellbeing and mental health projects. Alongside programme design she has extensive experience in conducting research and evaluations to influence change in the workplace and at the policy level.Marcia holds a M.Sc. and Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the Institute of Education and the Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Research Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College, London, U.K. respectively. She is a Fellow at the Young Foundation, U.K.
Larry Hollingworth, C.B.E., is the Humanitarian Programs Director for the Center for International Humanitarian Cooperation (CIHC) and a visiting Professor of Humanitarian Studies at the Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA) at Fordham University. Over the past few years he has served as Humanitarian Coordinator on CIHCsponsored missions for the United Nations in Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, and Pakistan. After serving as a British Army officer for thirty years, Larry joined UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, and held assignments in Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea. He was appointed Chief of Operations of UNHCR in Sarajevo, during the siege of the city in the Balkan conflict. He is a frequent lecturer on relief and refugee topics in universities and is a commentator on humanitarian issues for the BBC.
Lynne Jones, OBE, FRCPsych., Ph.D., is a child psychiatrist, relief worker, writer, and experienced trainer. She has spent much of the last 20 years establishing and running mental health programs in areas of conflict or natural disaster including the Balkans, East and West Africa, South East Asia, the Middle East, Central America, Haiti, and most recently the Philippines. Her most recent book is Outside the Asylum: A Memoir of War, disaster and Humanitarian Psychiatry). Jones has an MA in human sciences from the University of Oxford. She qualified in medicine before specializing in psychiatry and has a PhD in social psychology and political science. In 2001, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her work in child psychiatry in conflict-affected areas of Central Europe. She regularly consults for UNICEF and WHO. She is an honorary consultant at the Maudsley Hospital, London, and a visiting scientist at the François-Xavier Bagnoud Centre for Health and Human Rights, Harvard University.
Mark Jordans, Ph.D.,is a child psychologist. He is director of the Research and Development Department of War Child Holland. He is also a Senior Lecturer at the Center for Global Mental Health, King’s College London and holds an honorary appointment at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. His work focuses on the development, implementation and evaluation of psychosocial and mental health care systems in low and middle income countries, especially for children in adversities and in fragile states.
Mohan Mani Lamsal, L.L.M., works as Senior Regional Community-Based Protection Officer in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Bureau of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).He is based in Amman, Jordan. His current responsibilities include the strengthening of UNHCR’s capacity to ensure that its protection and humanitarian responses effectively respond to the needs, and build on the assets and capacities, of the communities that UNHCR serves and works with. He has been working for UNHCR in various protection capacities since 2003, including in protracted refugee situations in Nepal and Ethiopia, the repatriation operation in South Sudan, and with internally displaced persons in the Darfur region of Sudan and in Afghanistan.
Willem van de Put is cultural/medical anthropologist and philosopher by training. He worked in international public health since 1989, first with Médecins sans Frontières Holland, where he introduced medical anthropology and mental health programming, later as the founder of TPO Cambodia (1993-1998) and general director of HealthNet TPO (1998-2016). Together with Lynne Jones and the support of the IIHA at Fordham University, Willem started the course Mental Health in Complex Emergencies in 2004. Currently Willem works as a research fellow with the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, and is affiliated as research fellow with Fordham University, with a focus on emergency programming and health systems development in fragile states. Willem has also co-founded ‘C4C’, a foundation working on ‘Culture for Change’, applying experience in action research in concrete programmes where cultural traits and beliefs are transformed from perceived barriers for effective healing to drivers of sustainable change.