Egypt: Psychosocial Issues and Interventions for Refugees and Migrants (January 28 – February 1, 2018)

In a world where nearly 20 people are forcibly displaced every minute as a result of conflict or persecution,” UNHCR (2017), the crisis became epidemic in catastrophic proportions. It is widely recognized that the face of this crisis and the refugee landscape has changed greatly over the last decade. Refugees are less often concentrated in the traditional camps, and more often are living in urban areas, especially large cities. This change in landscape adds further psychosocial issues to consider, particularly, integration into communities and access to resources. Most of the guidelines and recommendations for psychosocial interventions are directed at those refugees living in camps, and it is recognized that this needs urgent addressing.

This course aims to bring those working with refugees and forced migrants together to develop a greater understanding of the needs, experiences, psychosocial and mental health interventions available to this ever growing and under serviced population, with a particular focus on displaced individuals living in urban areas. Whilst many refugees are able to great resilience and cope effectively, others in more vulnerable situations are less able to, and are at increased risk of mental health and social problems. Those with existing mental health issues are at great risk of the worsening and prolonging of such issues, given the circumstances in which they find themselves and a lack of access to appropriate resources.

This course will also familiarize participants with the Inter Agency Standing Committee Guidelines on mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings. The levels of interventions will be explored focusing on psychological first aid, basic counseling skills and the identification and sharing of referrals and cases.

About the Instructor: Kate Ellis is an Assistant Professor of Psychology and the Graduate Director of the Psychology Department at the American University in Cairo. She is a qualified clinical psychologist who completed her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Canterbury Christ Church University, in England. Dr Ellis works predominantly with refugees and individuals who have experienced trauma. Her research focuses on the impact of violence and conflict, with a particular focus on young people, which was the focus of her first PhD awarded by the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland. Dr Ellis is also the course coordinator of the Leadership in Mental Health course, Eastern Mediterranean Region, held annually at the AUC. This course was developed in collaboration with the WHO, in order to provide training to mental health professionals in the region, with the aims of up-scaling mental health services and putting mental health on the national health agenda in under resourced countries low economic status countries.

Eligibility for all courses

Requirements: These courses are offered for graduate and postgraduate students, and researchers as well as practitioners working with migrants and refugees. A minimum knowledge of displacement and migration terminologies and context is a requirement for participation in any of the three courses.

All courses are conducted in English and no translation facilities are provided. Participants should have a very good command of the English language. Each course will run from 9.30 am till 4pm for five days.

Interested applicants can apply for one course or for all courses.

Number of Participants: minimum of 12 in each course

NB: Non- Egyptian applicants are strongly encouraged to apply early because it takes more than one month to obtain Egyptian visa.

Dates and Location:

Courses will take place at AUC Tahrir Campus. The exact location and room numbers will be forwarded to accepted participants before the start of the courses.

Application Information:

To apply for the courses:

1. Fill out the application form. The form is available on CMRS website: http://www.aucegypt.edu/GAPP/cmrs/outreach/Pages/ShortCourses.aspx

2. Send the application form to cmrscourses@aucegypt.edu with your most recent C.V; Att. Naseem Hashim

Applicants may apply to and be accepted in more than one course. Please do not hesitate to contact cmrscourses@aucegypt.edu if you have any difficulty with the application process.
Applicants accepted for the course will be notified by email within a week after the deadline for submitting the application.