Group treatment of traumatised refugees

Tratamiento en grupo de refugiados traumatizados

Since 1994, the Red Cross Centre in Malmö has used treatment in groups as one of the therapies in rehabilitation of traumatised refugees. Until now there have been 30 groups, which means a total of about 300 persons have participated. Consequently, it is a well-established form of treatment at the centre.

Groups meet once a week. Each meeting includes two parts, the physiotherapeutic and the psychotherapeutic, both of which last for one hour. The treatment period has varied in duration from one year to three years, depending on the planning and the needs of the group members. The groups consist of men only, women only or groups with mixed sexes, with a total of 8 - 12 persons per group. There are always two leaders for each group, usually one physiotherapist and one psychologist. In the physiotherapeutic part the method called Body Awareness is used. The aim of this method is to integrate the body in the total experience if identity. Body Awareness includes relaxation, physical exercises and massage. The psychotherapy part includes conversation about the actual experiences the patients bring with them to the meeting, talk and explanations about their symptoms. We also deal with the difficult experiences they have been through in war and political prisons. Excursions and picnics are also a part of the group treatment, to bring normal and positive experiences back into their lives. An example would be spending one day in the forest grilling lamb and eating together, playing football, swimming etc. In the last couple of years two trips to Bosnia - Hercegovina have taken place. Participants in the groups, along with some of the personnel at thecentre, have travelled together and revisited the places where the patients come from and where they were traumatised. This has become an important part of the rehabilitation.

Evaluations of this kind of treatment have been done at the centre and have proven that group therapy is of great importance for people who have experienced "a collective" trauma, as the participants can recognise and support each others experiences and reactions. They can also help each other in the rehabilitation process with practical concrete advice for every-day life.