After the recent earthquake, mental health issues and psychosocial care emerged once again as a necessity for Ecuador, for residents of the affected area, and for response teams themselves.
On Friday June 10, PAHO/WHO Mental Health and Substance Use Unit and the Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Relief Department conducted a virtual seminar on "Mental health in emergencies: The experience after the earthquake in Ecuador". The seminar was addressed to PAHO's Emergency Response Team. Presentations were in charge of the Regional Advisor on Mental Health, Dr. Claudina Cayetano, and PAHO Consultant, Dr. Hugo Cohen.
Dr. Cohen traveled to Ecuador and worked with local authorities as part of the response team after the earthquake. He described his experience and the opportunity to work with multidisciplinary teams addressing basic aspects of survival, as well as the management of anxiety, fear and certain emotional issues that often occur in these situations. It is relevant to raise awareness on the fact that timely and effective interventions help prevent the suffering generated after such events from turning into a mental disorder.
Dr. Cayetano briefly presented PAHO's technical resources for disaster situations. She mentioned a document in Spanish, "Mental health technical guidelines for disasters and emergencies", which contains evidence-based mental health interventions aimed at health personnel.
The earthquake in Ecuador was another tragedy that highlights the relevance of mental health and the importance of early intervention. For more information, you can access the recording of the webinar by clicking on the following link: https://paho.webex.com/paho/ldr.php?RCID=c9394328cb3d4fc88a56220cbe5d29dc
