Report on – 33rd IC Resolution 2: Addressing mental health and psychosocial needs of people affected by armed conflicts, natural disasters and other emergencies (33IC/19/R2) – German Red Cross

Has your State/National Society/Institution incorporated the commitments contained in this resolution into the relevant strategic or operational plans?

The commitments are incorporated into:
Strategy
Operational plan

At the International, Regional, National, Local level

Explanation:

The German Red Cross (GRC) is a member of the Movement working group on mental health and psychosocial support which developed a roadmap to implement the Resolution “Addressing mental health and psychosocial needs of people affected by armed conflicts, natural disasters and other emergencies” adopted by the International Conference. In its international cooperation, the GRC works to disseminate and implement the roadmap. Due to capacity constraints, the GRC was not represented in the different sub-working groups to implement each of the six priority areas set out in the roadmap, but continues its active involvement in the overarching working group and its coordination meetings. Since 2023, GRC is an active member of the MHPSS Surge workstream and contributes with technical assistance from the GRC delegate roster.

In its international programmatic work, the GRC has made it a priority to support sister National Societies in implementing psychosocial support and mental health measures for people affected by crises (in line with OPs 1 and 4 of the Resolution). This engagement ranges from psychological first aid for migrants in the Americas, to psychosocial support for injured, disabled, or the elderly in Ukraine, to therapeutic services for refugees in Türkiye.

The GRC has also prioritized measures to promote and protect the mental health and psychological well-being of its staff (in line with OP 9 of the Resolution). A pool of external therapists and coaches was established in 2017 to provide psychosocial support for GRC delegates abroad. Staff of the international cooperation division was supported with a session on psychosocial mindfulness and care during the pandemic. Access was provided to one of the most widely used apps for meditation and mindfulness exercises. At the General Secretariat, psychosocial emergency care can be provided by a specialist expert and an occupational health and safety committee has been established with the involvement of employee representatives, which also addresses the mental health risk for employees.

The provisions of the Resolution on preserving or restoring mental health and meeting psychosocial needs have been largely implemented at national level in the areas of welfare and civil protection. In the future, GRC branches will be supported in systematically recording and incorporating psychosocial needs as part of the planning and implementation of measures.

Regarding displacement and migration, the GRC has put an emphasis on the psychological (emergency) care of migrants. Services for psychosocial care are provided at regional and district level, in coordination with the General Secretariat. Services include diagnosis, therapy, treatment as well as discussion groups, art therapy and other activities providing relief for those affected at psychosocial centres throughout Germany, operated by the GRC (in line with OPs 1 and 4). GRC staff and volunteers working with refugees are supported and provided with training courses on the topic (in line with OP 2).

The GRC carries out psychosocial emergency care measures in its regional and district branches, targeting both those affected as well as GRC personnel (see OPs 1 and 2). It offers training courses for emergency personnel on psychosocial emergency care. In addition, trained psychologist or medical specialists can become involved in the GRC as psychosocial emergency care specialists. The GRC psychosocial emergency care framework maps out the numerous training options and their content regarding psychosocial emergency care. During crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic or the floods in Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia in July 2021, the trainings and operative strategies were put to use. For example, the quarantine facilities for returnees from Wuhan/China offered psychosocial emergency care for adults and children and around 300 psychosocial emergency care personnel were mobilized to the flooded areas in 2021 to alleviate the acute psychosocial needs of the population and the emergency personnel working on site (in line with OPs 1, 3, 4 and 6 of the Resolution).

Has your State/National Society/Institution been working with other partners to implement the commitments contained in this resolution?

Partner with:
Government and/or public authorities
ICRC/IFRC
Other National Red Cross or Red Crescent Societies
Humanitarian and development partners (e.g. UN, NGOs etc.)

Examples of cooperation:

The GRC has prioritized supporting sister National Societies in implementing psychosocial support and mental health measures for people affected by crisis. The GRC for example assists the Turkish Red Crescent in implementing a comprehensive program enabling treatment for refugees from Syria. The GRC furthermore supports sister National Societies which provide programs and treatment for refugees from war-torn areas as well as low-threshold psychological support measures (e.g. in Yemen, Egypt) (in line with OPs 1 and 4). Measures have been expanded by many National Societies in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The GRC has supported these efforts (e.g. the establishment and operation of hotlines) of sister societies according to need and financial possibilities. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the GRC also seconded a specialized Mental Health and Psychological Support Delegate to the IFRC’s Regional Office Europe in Budapest for six months.

To strengthen standards on addressing mental health and psychosocial needs, the GRC has been taking on the administrative lead of the Psychosocial Acute Assistance Working Group founded by the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance and consisting of all German aid and church organizations. The working group established minimum standards in the context of psychosocial emergency aid in 2021 (acting in line with OPs 3 and 6).

The GRC also sits on the steering committee of the European Network of Psychosocial Support, in which National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Europe and Central Asia meet to discuss psychosocial emergency care issues.

Another example of work with partners is the “EU4Health” project, set up to contribute to the mental health of refugees and to build the resilience of full-time and volunteer staff (in line with OP 2). In connection with the conflict in Ukraine, the European Commission has provided the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement with funding to offer mental health first aid for refugees from Ukraine. The project has been implemented under the leadership of the IFRC’s Regional Office Europe together with 25 RC/RC National Societies (OP 1).

Have you encountered any challenges in implementing the commitments contained in this resolution?

With challenges on:
Funding constraints
Competing priorities

Have the commitments contained in this resolution had an impact on the work and direction of your State/National Society/Institution?

Type of Impact:
Cooperation between Government/public authorities and National Society has been strengthened
Programming and operations have become more effective and efficient
Innovative tools/methodologies have been developed and are utilized
Partnerships with other humanitarian actors have been created or enhanced
Increase in mobilization of resources
Training and capacity of staff and volunteers has increased (for National Societies)

Details about the impact:

Following the adoption of the Resolution, trainings have increased the capacity of staff and volunteers, and new strategies to implement psychosocial care measures have been implemented.

Have the commitments contained in this resolution had an impact on the communities that your State/National Society/Institution serves?

Description of the impact:

The Resolution has helped to strengthen interventions within the GRC’s programmatic work. Psychosocial emergency care measures, related frameworks and trainings for employees and volunteers improved responses, including at domestic level to the COVID-19 pandemic and the floods in 2021.