Prepare, look, listen, and link.

These are the four important steps that a community mobiliser and leader must know when administering Psychological First Aid (PFA) to survivors of violence and crises. The four words resounded continuously during UNFPA’s training on the importance of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) in Tari, Hela Province.

23 community leaders and mobilisers from across Hela Province are completing this training, the focus of which is psychological first aid, to better provide support in their communities to deliver evidence-based support for individuals affected by violence. One community mobiliser, Ms. Jenny Martin from the Komo Learning and Empowerment Center, expressed her gratitude for the MHPSS training saying accidents, crises, and acts of violence can happen anytime and community mobilisers must be ready to help support survivors.

“I am lucky to be part of this training because I now know how to administer psychosocial first aid and, importantly, how to link the survivors of violence to the right person and the right place.”

Psychosocial first aid is aims to reduce stress symptoms and assist in a healthy recovery following a traumatic event, natural disaster, public health emergency, or even a personal crisis. With so few professional mental health services available in the Highlands Region, these community mobilisers are on the frontlines for trauma and psychological distress and through this training will be able to provide practical support and proper assessment of needs.

UNFPA Mental Health Specialist Ms. Stella Dermosoniadi, who is leading this training, remarked on the importance of psychological first aid.

“This training is to help these community mobilizers to know how to provide psychosocial support during an emergency in their communities,” said Stella. “These mobilisers will be able to create community-based activities and meaningful engagement.”

“There are no professionals in the province when it comes to MHPSS and so this training is to support and empower community mobilizers to confidently provide the basics of this first aid.”

This activity was made possible through the partnership of the United Nations Population Fund Papua New Guinea and UN Women Papua New Guinea in the organisations’ combined efforts to support peacebuilding in the Highlands Region.