Yerevan - IOM, in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, is providing Primary Health Care assistance and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support through the deployment of two mobile health clinics with multi-disciplinary health teams. They are deployed to locations where they are most needed, predominantly where there is a large concentration of people and lack of easy access to hospitals and health centres. The teams include a general physician, pediatrician, sonographer and laboratory technician. The health teams engage specialists’ from the areas of neurology, cardiology, infectious diseases, and others on a rolling basis based on the needs highlighted by the communities.  

Each team also includes a psychologist for mental health and psychosocial support. Mental health and psychosocial support remain a pressing need.

IOM interviewed one of the psychologists from one of the two mobile teams. Dr. Angela Nazaretyan has been deploying with the mobile teams since 2 October 2023. She is sharing her observations and takeaways.

IOM: Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. You have been deploying with the mobile clinic to different locations to provide services to the refugees. Tell us a bit about your work in general, how a usual daily deployment works, how many people come to you, and your overall observations.

Angela Nazaretyan: Of course, psychological work in emergency situations differs from the classical examples known to us, both in terms of location and working conditions, as well as in working methods and approaches. Although there are many widespread stereotypes related to seeking psychological support, it should be noted that those who visited counseling eventually understood the importance of the work and referred their relatives to a psychologist on their own initiative. During the day, the number of visitors can vary between 5-10, among whom there are children, middle-aged and elderly people.

IOM: Please share with us, from your experience, what are the biggest challenges people face now, what kind of issues they usually share with you and look for your help with. What are some of the most important ways in which MHPSS services can help the refugees?

Angela Nazaretyan: As a result of displacement and war operations, one of the most frequently observed problems among the people from Karabakh is loss and grief, high anxiety, and fear. Individuals who had problems before these actions now report that the situation has worsened. Given the severity of the situation, psychological work uses techniques that maximally contribute to the activation of the person's internal resources and recognition of the problem. At the initial stage, the individual approach and the work done to activate the person's resources and identify the problems are important, but later group psychotherapy can also be effective. As for the children, the whole counseling process and work should be carried out with play methods as well as art-therapeutic means that motivate the child and help to explore the issues more deeply.

IOM: How important is MHPSS and what role do you think it will play in the mid-term future, as people are trying to resettle their lives in Armenia now? What modalities would you recommend?

Angela Nazaretyan: Psychological support is always important and especially in emergency situations. A person's mental and psychological health very often determines his physical (somatic) condition. Considering the problems caused by war operations and displacement, it should be stated that psychological support is paramount for these people.

Turning to integration, it is worth noting that as long as feelings of loss and grief, as well as emotional instability, are present, full inclusion is difficult to imagine without professional support. In the conditions of rational evaluation of the situation and overcoming of psychological problems, integration will be carried out more quickly.