Complementary work for Ukraine
Interview with crisis advisor Astrid van Engen
When war broke out in Ukraine, Astrid van Engen was a senior crisis advisor at ARQ IVP and felt a strong shared mission to broadly share the knowledge and expertise within ARQ. So that ARQ can be for all those affected and involved in the war in Ukraine.
From March 2022, employees from different parts of ARQ came together in a broad Ukraine consultation: “We discussed what the various units had already deployed on their own behalf to alleviate the psychosocial impact of the war on the relatively large group of those affected. I felt a strong shared mission to be able to share our knowledge and expertise widely.”
"Through Mind-Spring we train a select group of Ukrainian refugees so they can assist their compatriots in the Netherlands themselves."
Together for all
“By working on a complementary basis within ARQ, we can be there for all types of people affected and involved. We give training to Ukrainian care providers so that they are strengthened in their difficult task in the war zone. Our experts and free e-learning are at the ready for healthcare professionals in Ukraine who have to deal with difficult case histories. Through Mind-Spring training, we train a select group of Ukrainian refugees so that they can assist their compatriots in the Netherlands themselves. We also provide advice and training to Dutch employers who have Russian and/or Ukrainian employees on how to deal with the impact of the war on their people. And in a national consultation with, among others, the Red Cross, the mental health services and municipal health services, we are thinking about setting up a single unit for the care of Ukrainians in the Netherlands.”
Lessons for the future
“At ARQ, we certainly need to continue this complementary work. We learn from each other and can strengthen each other. What we have done and are doing now explicitly for Ukraine, we can also do in future crises.”
In addition to the activities in the Netherlands, ARQ also provides psychosocial care in Ukraine as a guest partner of the Dutch foundation Giro555.