[psych-hr] Re: Psychologists without frontiers

Hello,

Yes, I would be interested if there was such an organization.  There does
not appear to be.

Jerry is right. The Center for Victims of Torture (CVT) is one such NGO
doing work with post war trauma in West Africa. CVT has programs in Guinea
and Sierra Leone which provide torture treatment to refugees. The approach
we use is best described as an intensive refugee training model for
building psychosocial capacity after the mass atrocities suffered during
the war in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

We employ clinicians (usually psychologists) experienced in trauma and
torture treatment to train refugee psychosocial agents (PSAs). PSAs are
selected from the refugee community and receive intensive, hands-on
training and supervision so they can provide services back to their
community through actual service provision and mental health
interventions.

We use this sustainable model to address the tremendous need for mental
health services and to leave trained mental health paraprofessionals in
country after we depart.
http://www.cvt.org/main.php/BuildingHealingCommunities/InternationalOutr
each/CVTWestAfrica

Having an organization such as psychology sans frontiers would make it
easier for us to find experienced clinicians willing to spend a year in
West Africa.

Edie Lewison
West Africa Desk Officer
717 E. River Road
Minneapolis MN 55455
Center for Victims of Torture
+1 612 436-4862 phone
+1 612 436-2606 fax
elewison@cvt.org
www.cvt.org

CVT, Restoring the Dignity of the Human Spirit



On 1 March 2004, Jerry Kovacs wrote:

>As far as I know, there is no such organization. However, there are some
>NGOs involved in psychological trauma work in post war societies.
>You can watch for job postings on Reliefweb.org
>




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