Empowering resettled child and adolescent refugees through school-based mental health programs: Building a more inclusive community

In a recently published article, Khan et al. (2022) consider the impact of a major humanitarian crisis on the mental well-being of Afghan refugee children and adolescents resettled in Qatar. The article also reports the remarkable efforts of Qatar's mental health services in addressing the psychological needs of Afghan child and adolescent refugees, mostly unaccompanied. The world witnessed the resilience of Afghan families, unaccompanied children, and youth being forced to leave their homeland. However, as these young individuals have now transitioned to new countries for resettlement, it is essential to reflect on how to sustain and build upon the gains achieved in Qatar. While the article effectively outlined the response in Qatar, the focus in this response article is on the crucial role that schools can play in supporting the mental health needs of young refugees around the globe, including Afghan and Ukrainian, in their settled countries. This article aims to highlight the significance of school-based mental health initiatives in fostering a safe, nurturing environment that enables young refugees to build the resilience required to function effectively in the longer term.

Other Information

Published in: Asian Journal of Psychiatry
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2023.103766