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) – The Palestine Red Crescent Society

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
Policy
Operational plan
Legislation (e.g. Law, Regulation, Statutes, Rules of Procedure etc.)

At the International, Regional, National, Local level

Explanation:

The PRCS MHPSS staff have participated at the international level in the MHPSS- EN – Mental Health and Psychosocial Support European Network conferences on yearly basis, except 2023, because of the war in Gaza, therefore PRCS was part of the roadmap planning, discussions and implementation. PRCS is also represented in the MENA MHPSS Community of Practice (CoP) at the regional level. PRCS MHPSS staff are part of the preparation team preparing the National Mental Health strategy 2023- 2028. In addition to our cooperation and collaboration with ministers in Palestine e.g. Ministry of Education, Ministry of Social Development, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Women Affairs to ensure alignment with national strategies and policies.

PRCS is streamlining MHPSS in the emergency response systems including preparedness, contingency plans, and emergency response.

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

Partner with:
National Red Cross or Red Crescent Society in your country
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:

PRCS is an active member in the MHPSS Technical Working Group at the national level, heading the communication subgroup, in addition to our role in the different clusters under the UNICEF umbrella, with special interest in the national Child Protection Area of Responsibility (CPAoR). At the local level PRCS is in partnership with the governorates, local councils, NGOs and CBOs with special attention to MHPSS intervention in emergencies; PRCS MHPSS coordinators are heading the MHPSS emergency teams in three governorates, teams consist of all actors in the governorates. PRCS has MoU with the universities to train students graduating from humanitarian fields on MHPSS.

All through the coordination meetings and the implementation that follows Do no harm is highlighted and practiced, psychological first aid (PFA) as an emergency response is implemented with the 72 hours of the onset of armed escalation and hostilities, volunteers are being trained on delivering PFA, and safety referrals are insured.

MHPSS programs at PRCS consider all vulnerable groups in Palestine with concentration on children, women and elderly people groups taking into consideration the needs of people with disabilities to guarantee easy access and participation in the groups.

Cooperation with movement components in the field of MHPSS is further strengthened especially with Danish RC, IFRC PSS center, as well as with PICA, during international and regional emergency response interventions.

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

With challenges on:
Human resources
Other

Details about challenges:

The MHPSS department at PRCS until beginning of May 2024 consisted of 5 field coordinators, 1 admin staff and the director of the department. Every field coordinator is responsible for 2 governorates. The policy was to train as much volunteers as possible to help in implementing the work in level one and two in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement’s Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Framework, while interventions related to level three were referred to other specialized NGOs with no feedback on the process or progress with the cases. Beginning of November 2023, a service contract with psychotherapy clinic was signed to support people in the community needs of level 3 intervention, though still we are still working on activating and operationalizing this service i to the helpers and volunteers at PRCS.

Starting May 2024, the MHPSS department welcomed 5 new workers, 4 of them with PSS educational background and 1 as projects coordinator, which will assist in more targeted areas to be covered.

Protection is one of the challenging components. Eventually, measures to protect and promote the MH and psychosocial wellbeing of staff and volunteers who are responding to the humanitarian needs, equipping them with the necessary skills, tools and supervision to cope with stressful situations are crucially needed.

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

Type of Impact:
Increase in mobilization of resources
Other

Details about the impact:

• Increase in mobilization of resources
• Other: The most important affect is resuming the operational and functional work of the MHPSS department after 5 years of operating as a resource center for training and capacity building in addition to supervision.

Through connecting with the IFRC psychological reference center PRCS utilized many resources such as PFA for children, PFA for young peers and lately the new manual of PFA for complex reactions and situations and Children emotional Cards.

The MHPSS department at PRCS restarted its effective operational intervention at the beginning of 2022.

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

Description of the impact:

Since restarting MHPSS department at PRCS in 2022, more than 12000 people were reached by the different programs that are implemented on the ground.