HI trains physical rehabilitation professionals to work in emergencies

United States, Canada, Belgium, Australia... For one week, 14 rehabilitation professionals from different countries were trained by HI specialists (emergency, protection, safeguarding, security, ethical emergency psychological assistance, etc.) to optimize their skills in future humanitarian emergency responses.
By training them, HI aims to become part of World Health Organization's “Emergency Medical Team” initiative, with a rapidly and efficiently deployable team certified and specialized in emergency rehabilitation during a disaster.

Megan Mitchell, an American physical therapist regularly involved in emergency responses to climate disasters in the United States, is once again donning the “HI” logo after a mission to Ukraine last year on behalf of the organization. For Megan, there is no doubt:

“Rehabilitation has to be an integral part of the disaster response, we add value by making sure that people are not forgotten, ignored or rejected because their injuries are not serious enough. I'm really committed to working in these contexts and I wanted to work with the best in the business.” 

A full-scale simulation exercise

It was in this context that HI’s teams set the stage for a humanitarian crisis that would enable participants to gain experience in an emergency intervention situation.

“The aim was for them to learn to understand and recognize their reactions in an emergency context, with different parameters that can disrupt their practice. We also wanted to familiarize them with intervention processes, equipment and teamwork in difficult conditions, under pressure, in sometimes tense security contexts,” explains Pauline Falipou, an emergency rehabilitation specialist at HI.

The scenario: a terrible earthquake has struck the country of “Fictitia”, killing over 5,800 people and injuring 75,800. HI's rehabilitation specialists are deployed on-site as part of the World Health Organization's "Emergency Medical Teams" initiative, as a team specialized in emergency rehabilitation. They have to work in the local hospital, which has no rehabilitation department, as well as provide ambulatory care in a shelter set up in a tent to respond to the emergency. The nearest rehabilitation center has been severely damaged in the earthquake. The survivors are pouring in with very serious injuries. Ficticia is a politically and socio-economically unstable country, where there are regular clashes between various armed groups.

For Anthony, who has been working as a physical therapist in Canada for over 13 years, this is his first immersion in a humanitarian crisis setting:

“The fact that this was a new experience for me made it all the more rewarding, and I felt supported by HI and my colleagues. What really struck me were the practical aspects of this kind of deployment, the ethical aspects, why and how we make certain choices... and lastly the security aspect, because in this kind of context, you obviously have to stay safe to be able to continue providing assistance to people.”

”What makes an emergency context like this so different is essentially the intensity of the working conditions," explains Marie Rémy, a French physical therapist specialized in the care of burn victims:

“Not only do you have to provide assistance to patients when they come out of the operating room, but you also have to deal with everything that's going on around you - the crowds, people looking for their loved ones, people in a state of shock, traumatized people... I felt a bit lost at times, but what reassured me was being part of a team.”

WHO certification to work in emergency settings

The second objective of this training was to obtain certification as a "Specialized Emergency Rehabilitation Team" from the World Health Organization.

This certification is a validation of HI's conformity with the standards of the “Emergency Medical Teams” mechanism.

“It will make it easier for us to access certain zones, so we can intervene more quickly and more effectively,” explains Violette Van Bever, a Belgium-based HI rehabilitation specialist who took part in the simulation as a team leader.

By being part of this system, HI's teams will be able to intervene within the first few days of a humanitarian disaster at the request of the affected states and the WHO.

For Deborah Gray, an English occupational therapist who participated in the training, this EMT ‘buffer’ confirms “the essential role that rehabilitation plays in humanitarian emergencies.” Because the sooner rehabilitation treatment begins, the less chance there is of complications and permanent disability for patients.

Another of HI's objectives is to increase the pool of professionals who can be mobilized in the event of a humanitarian disaster. HI plans to organize this type of training once a year from now on.