Studies have shown that there is a clear relationship between organizational support and the mental health of humanitarian workers: good management minimizes stress. Given this connection, the proper preparation, training, and support of field workers would seem likely to be an integral part of an organization's responsibilities toward its staff. However, studies of organizational practices indicate that such efforts have been a neglected aspect of pre-departure training.
Attention to the psychosocial needs of field staff during the pre-deployment phase helps develop a stable workforce by curbing the potential for illness, psychological distress (including "anticipatory anxiety"), security lapses, poor performance, and the high expenses associated with turnover. But these problems can be exacerbated if organizations neglect their obligations to take the proper precautions on behalf of their employees. Indeed, examining liability areas can be an effective tool to show when an organization is acting responsibly and when it is not. And while good risk management practices reduce the likelihood of legal action and can help in negotiating adequate insurance, their most important result is to ensure that staff are well looked after.
Because they contribute directly to ameliorating some of the worst humanitarian crises of our time, field workers can garner considerable personal meaning and professional gratification from their jobs. Fortunately, more and more attention is being paid to the inherent stress and insecurity of field work and the psychological needs of humanitarian workers. Coupled with adequate recruitment and screening practices that identify "resilience" in field staff, effective pre-deployment measures can help bolster such resiliency by preparing staff in advance for the challenges they may face on assignment.
The resources featured below are designed to help you and your agency do just that.
CARE's security and safety handbook assembles the best available information on how to work safely in today's humanitarian environment. The handbook discusses policies, assessments, planning, stress management, and fundamental safety and security procedures. Follow the link to Chapter 7 to find material devoted to the sources of stress, stress indicators, and ways to prevent stress.
Experience has shown that staff have an easier time adapting to a new assignment when they are presented with a realistic set of expectations for their new work and living situation. This sample fact sheet, courtesy of Catholic Relief Services, serves as a guideline for covering the most important information that you need to share with your staff before you send them on their way.
This section of the Aid Workers Network website provides several links to resources about recognizing and handling common physical and emotional problems encountered during disaster relief activities.
This link will bring you to a list of brief but thorough information sheets on topics including Resilience, Traumatic and Cumulative Stress, Tools to Cope with Stress, Depression, Compassion Fatigue, and Coping Mechanisms.
A free multimedia online curriculum on various topics related to humanitarian work, resilience, stress, and trauma. Courses currently available include "Understanding and coping with traumatic stress"; "Trauma and critical incident care for humanitarian workers"; and "On the road again: Coping with travel and re-entry stress". More courses are in development.
If you're interested in a more interactive approach to understanding stress, check out this resource. Insights into the Concept of Stress is a workbook that walks the reader through a course aimed at helping aid workers identify and understand stress.
This workbook is meant to accompany the "Insights into the Concept of Stress" workbook (listed above) and focuses on dealing with stress particularly in disasters and traumatic situations.
This 2003 article by People In Aid's Jonathan Potter examines the risks of aid work that stretch from terrorism to those less obvious but more common—stress, overwork and "burnout", through to disease, accidents, and even loneliness or depression—while tackling a crisis a long way from home. Rising pressures on staff have prompted a growing number of aid agencies to share information, set standards, and take practical steps to ensure that the training, support, and management they offer will keep workers safe so they can deliver the best results.
This report describes the findings and recommendations resulting from an investigation into the support and management provided to workers in relief and development. Methods included a survey of 200 returned workers and discussions with employing agencies.
Claire Colliard is founder and executive director of the Center for Humanitarian Psychology, a Geneva-based NGO offering psychological support to humanitarian staff. As a former clinical psychologist, she argues that agencies have the responsibility to do what they can to prevent staff being overwhelmed by stress and overwork, through providing good access to information and communications channels.
Humanitarian emergencies today expose individuals and organizations to new dilemmas and new challenges. Staff turnover is high and burnout is common. This article offers suggestion for development of a stable and experienced workforce whose energies are effectively harnessed through more enlightened organizational policies. When seen in this light, the psychological support of relief workers is simply part of the employer's duty and responsibility—it is not an optional extra.
Cross-cultural psychologists refer to temporary visitors to another country as cultural sojourners. This article explores exactly what that means, why psychologists would care, and what's involved in the "sojourner" cycle—from when you are preparing to depart for another country to the time you are getting ready to return home.
This 2004 article by Colleen A. McFarlane discusses risk factors that affect the way an international worker may react to trauma and survive it. Eleven specific areas of risk are explored.
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