Not doing more, but doing differently: Integrating a community based psychosocial approach into other sectors
Citation
Horn, R., Waade, M. & Kalisky, M. (2016) Not doing more, but doing differently: Integrating a community based psychosocial approach into other sectors. Intervention, 14 (3), pp. 245-256.
Abstract
A multi-layered approach to mental health and
psychosocial support in emergencies includes the
integration of psychosocial approaches into sectors
with primary aims other than the enhancement
of mental health and psychosocial support. This
paper shares the experiences of Church of Sweden's
psychosocial team in supporting its partner organisations
(within the ACT Alliance) to integrate
a community based psychosocial approach into
programmes in sectors including: education, child
protection, livelihoods, water and sanitation, and
food security. Case studies are used to describe
how mental health and psychosocial support
core principles can assist organisations to integrate
psychosocial approaches into a variety of
programmes, and to demonstrate that this is
more about working in a different way than about
taking on additional tasks. The challenges associated
with supporting organisations to integrate
psychosocial approaches into their programmes
are also outlined, and the need for research to
evaluate the effectiveness of this type of approach
is acknowledged