A Syrian refugee boy draws with his fingers on the glass. © UNHCR/Yorgos Kyvernitis
This Sunday (10 October) marks “World Mental Health Day”, with a focus on ensuring that mental health care is accessible for all. Mental health includes our social, psychological, and emotional wellbeing. According to the World Health Organization, 22% of adults in conflict settings have been impacted by mental health issues – triple the average rate for those in non-conflict settings. Children are also deeply affected.
In Greece, UNHCR in partnership with the mental health agency EPAPSY and with the financial support of the European Union, established a “Community Psychosocial Workforce” project in 2019. This project empowers refugees and asylum-seekers through specialized training, to provide core psychosocial support to other refugees and asylum-seekers in their mother tongue, under the supervision of specialized psychologists and social workers.
This project was further expanded in 2020 to include a specialized helpline. Furthermore, a new pilot “peer-to-peer” project is being launched on Samos island with the aim of supporting adolescent peer mentors provide advice and support and serve as role models for other children and youth, with supervision of Community Psychosocial Workers and mental health professionals.
Mental health issues amongst refugees and asylum-seekers may arise not only from experiences in the country of origin, but also due to dangers faced on their journey as well as conditions in the country of asylum. The COVID-19 pandemic has compounded this problem for many. Fear of the virus, confinement and isolation measures and a lack of clear information have contributed to an increase in mental health issues reported.
UNHCR carries out participatory assessments nationwide annually with refugees and asylum-seekers to better understand the challenges that they are facing, in order to better target and improve our interventions. During this year’s assessments, refugees and asylum-seekers highlighted some of the challenges they face in terms of mental health.
“We cannot do anything, we can only wait…it is like a mental prison” said one asylum-seeker on one of the islands. The impact of being in a state of limbo and unable to leave the islands due to geographical restrictions has had a profound effect on the mental health of many.
Others highlighted the lack of mental health services available for persons who have suffered severe trauma in their home countries. “There is no capacity to help victims of torture, prisoners of war, or victims of violence be it physical or mental” said another.
Despite several positive interventions, many gaps remain. Referral pathways to specialized services have not been fully established or are not fully functional, while there is a need for more targeted material and professional assistance to persons with mental health concerns.
“We strongly advocate for the integration of mental health care into primary health services to make these services truly accessible for all, including local communities as well as refugees and asylum-seekers” said Mireille Girard, UNHCR Representative in Greece.
UNHCR is also encouraging the development of a new Community Mental Health Services model, which should be adopted by public mental health providers, NGOs and private institutions offering mental health services. Trained Community Psychosocial Workers in the mental health structures can work for the benefit of both refugees and Greek communities. A holistic and integrated approach to ensure the availability of interpretation services is also a key priority to ensure the accessibility of services for all.
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