2023-10-22 04:55:00
Mental health is in crisis. This is what professional medical organizations and the WHO itself agree on. And, above all, social perception itself reaffirms it: in a recent survey published by the consulting firm Voices!Argentines turned out to be the Latin American country with the worst “evaluation” of his emotional state. According to this study, 28% of those consulted said they had it ‘bastante malo’ or ‘a little’. Given the worsening of this situation – and the difficulty in getting immediate help – mental health professionals propose disseminating and training people about the importance of Psychological First Aid, which can become a first “line” of help and containment, while a professional intervenes.
“Mental health is a fundamental aspect: there is no health without mental health,” he told PROFILE Rodrigo Cuba, Undersecretary of Human Development of the Argentine Red Cross NGO. And he stressed that “everyone can help someone who is suffering and it is very useful to know how to do it in the best way. Of course, when faced with mental illnesses, requesting help from a professional is the key.”
PAP details
What is Psychological First Aid (PAP)? “It is a set of skills and knowledge that any person – without distinction of gender, age or training – can use to help others feel capable of facing an emergency or crisis situation,” said Cuba, who is also a nurse and psychologist. And he went on to say: “PAPs are the first actions that can be taken to provide response and containment to a person who is going through a moment of crisis.” In other words, it is a simple intervention, the objective of which is to provide immediate support so that the person can restore their personal stability on an emotional and physical level.
As with general first aid – which trains us to act correctly in the event of a wound, sprain or drowning – PAPs are a set of techniques that help the rescuer to evaluate a situation, knowing how to react to a person who is in a crisis moment and how to approach someone in danger. In short, they teach to count on the essential tools to transmit calm and support in distress situationsanxiety or sadness.
Cuba highlighted that the PAP, as with traditional first aid, “are primary measures. Just as after making an emergency bandage, the ambulance takes the injured person to the hospital; the same thing happens with the PAP: after the initial containment there is than referring the emotionally injured person to a mental health professional.
What causes the crisis
The situations that can trigger the need to receive PAPs are of all kinds. According to field work done by Humanitarian Observatory of the Argentine Red Crosslos ‘triggers‘There could be many. But the usual examples are various very common distressing circumstances, such as the loss of a loved one, a job, the diagnosis of a chronic illness, a personal separation, situations of mistreatment or abuse. Added to this are specific crisis situations such as a family member trapped in a war zone or attacks.
One of the central points of this problem is that those who need attention for their mental health usually find barriers of all kinds. The usual ones are economic, personal, organizational, social and professional.
One in three Argentines evaluated that their mood was “bad”
For example, the survey carried out on 702 people found that among those who said they found financial difficulties in having psychological assistance. 21% link it to the lack of money to pay for the consultation and 20% to the impossibility of missing a day of work.
Of those who encountered organizational barriers to accessing care, 39% said they “They didn’t give him an appointment or they gave him a distant date” and 30% stated that “many prior procedures had to be done.”
Other times the resistance is internal: among the personal barriers, the Red Cross Observatory found that a majority of respondents thought that “it was not necessary to consult” (47%), followed by 27% of people who did not believe that they could be helped by a professional to mitigate the situation they were facing.”
In a world where crises occur repeatedly and each iteration of them seems to be more serious, the widespread promotion and teaching of Psychological First Aid becomes a true social need.
The three principles of containment
In essence, Psychological First Aid (PAP) is used to help to anyone who is going through a difficult time during, or immediately after, a crisis or emergency. The three key steps are:
* Ver: Assess the environment and see if there is a need for PAP based on what you see or hear someone else say. It is important to have information about what happened, identify who needs help, what their emotional reaction is like, and if they have any other immediate basic needs (for example, physical injuries).
* Listen: The next step is to introduce yourself in order to establish a link. Consult how to help, pay attention, actively listen (listening attention to provide connection and interest in the other), and provide support while respecting feelings. To accompany the person, it is essential to maintain a calm tone of voice and make sure they are listening.
The Red Cross gives free PAPs courses periodically
* Link: PAPs are an early but limited intervention. And the third point is to support the person going through a crisis to find a professional or emergency service if necessary. Those interested in training in Psychological First Aid may do so by writing to [email protected] where they are taught free PAP coursesperiodically.
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