Psychosocial support for families with children in the de-Occupied territories of Kharkiv region

Psychosocial support for families with children in the de-occupied territories of Kharkiv Region is the experience of the NGO “Responsible Citizens” in partnership with the Charity Foundation “Hope and Housing for Children.”

For three months, mobile teams from the NGO “Responsible Citizens” operated in the Kharkiv region, providing psychosocial support to families with children. The project’s main focus is on residents of recently liberated areas in the Izium and Balakliia communities, especially in the surrounding villages.

A total of five mobile teams operate in these areas, each consisting of a social worker, a medical specialist, and a psychologist. The advantage of mobile teams is that they can reach populated areas with insufficient transportation links. This means that the principle of visiting each family separately is implemented to observe the living conditions of the children, communicate with both the children and their parents or guardians, identify needs, and provide support.

It is also important that three specialists work in each team, each with their own role.

The social worker is responsible for the initial diagnosis of the child’s living conditions, maintains a profile for each family, and knows where to refer beneficiaries for specific issues, such as how to receive support from the government or other humanitarian organizations.

The medical worker conducts a basic examination of the child and provides advice on further steps if necessary.

The psychologist deals with more sensitive matters—his responsibilities include assessing and identifying psychological issues and supporting the child in their further rehabilitation. Unfortunately, people who have experienced combat actions and occupation have many problems that need to be addressed. This applies not only to children; parents often approach specialists with complaints of increased anxiety.

A total of five mobile teams worked on the project, making 182 visits and reaching 785 families. The total number of children who received assistance was 1,274, including 60 displaced persons and 12 children with disabilities. Ninety-six cases were classified as complex, for which additional support (case management) was implemented.

Three hundred ninety-six families received assistance in the form of hygiene kits.