Mental health and psychosocial support in humanitarian settings : linking practice and research
A comprehensive review of research and practice of mental health and psychosocial support in of humanitarian crises.
Tol, Wietse A. ; Barbui, Corrado ; Galapatti, Ananda ; Silove,
Derrick ; Betancourt, Theresa S. ; Souza, Renato ; Golaz, Anne ;
Ommeren, Mark van. Mental health and psychosocial support
in humanitarian settings : linking practice and
research. Lancet, 2011, 378 (9802):
1581-1591.
This paper provides a comprehensive review on research and
practice of mental health and psychosocial supports in the setting
of humanitarian crisis.
Firstly, the authors reviewed interventions of mental
health and psychological supports in countries that had
humanitarian crisis between 2007 and October 2010, using four
databases. Secondly, the funding for these interventions was
assessed by analysing Financial Tracking Service and Creditor
Reporting system databases. Thirdly, the authors did a systematic
review and meta-analysis of studies assessing the interventions of
mental health and psychological supports in humanitarian
crises.
The major messages of this review are:
- There is a lack of connection between research and
practice. Research should look more closely into the most
frequently implemented interventions, which often have not been
under scrutiny.
- There is a need to broaden the outcomes aside from PTSD
and assess interventions for people with severe mental
disorders.
- Improvements of research methods are crucial. It is
recommended to use randomised controlled trial design where
necessary.
- Concerns about the sustainability of intervention are raised as
most of interventions are implemented and funded outside the
country.
- To scale-up the programme, information on the effectiveness and
cost-effectiveness of interventions needs to be addressed. However,
research on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of
interventions is extremely scarce.
Reviewed by SJW, RCT