IMC Makes New Commitment to Provide Mental Health Services In Conflict-Affected Regions

PHOTO: IMC

International Medical Corps President and CEO Nancy Aossey receives a Certificate of Commitment from former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright at a ceremony during the Clinton Global Initiative’s annual meeting in New York.

The ceremony, which occurred Sept 21st, was in recognition of Aossey’s pledge to further broaden IMC’s groundbreaking efforts to bring mental health into the mainstream of healthcare in the developing world. IMC’s emphasis on this oft-ignored dimension of relief and development work has been part its mission for over a decade. Its experience and expertise in this field are qualities that set IMC apart from many other international humanitarian assistance organizations.

“I view this commitment as a challenge to increase IMC’s impact in this important area,” Aossey said. “Thanks to the Clinton Global Initiative, it is also an opportunity to expand awareness about the need to address mental illness, no matter where it occurs.”

Under the terms of the one-year, $3.2 million commitment, IMC will search for opportunities “to design and implement programs that focus on training primary healthcare providers to recognize, treat and refer cases of mental stress” in four eastern and central Africa countries: Sudan, Chad, Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo.

IMC’s priority on mental health care stems from the reality that the effects of mental illness have a devastating impact-- not just on individuals, but on communities and the economies of developing nations already struggling to survive in a competitive world.

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