Medecins Sans Frontieres supports and helps individuals who experience fear, sadness, anxiety, concerns for the future, and feelings of hopelessness. For many people, however, moving forward proves difficult: when the ground continues to shake, and home is a golf course that lacks drainage or an organized system of latrines. Without concrete solutions to the situation they face, the need for psychological support is great.
"Most of the patients present with physical complaints and symptoms such as loss of appetite, memory problems, sleep problems, cardiac palpitations, flashbacks of the event," says psychologist Djénane Marlhen Jean Charles, a member of the local medical staff since 2006.
To help patients cope with anxiety and stress, MSF offers relaxation techniques and counseling sessions. "This strategy works 80 percent of the time,” says Charles. “However, if a patient presents with severe or psychiatric symptoms and requires medical attention, we refer to a psychiatrist and continue to offer psychosocial support.” The patient may be referred to the St. Louis medical center where MSF treats those suffering from severe psychiatric distress.
Dr. Maryvonne Bargue is an MSF psychiatrist who leads a mental health team of 19 people. In an interview at the MSF Saint-Louis Hospital in Port-au-Prince, Dr. Bargue explains in depth how people still feel the earthquake's psychological aftershocks four months later.
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