Access To Services

For the potential clients inside the reformatory and detention centers, our counselors are conducting psycho-educational seminars for groups of people talking about the impact of torture on individual, positive coping mechanism and available services of our organization.

After each seminar, some clients talk directly to our counselors, if they feel that they need further assessment and services. Upon receiving any case, the prospective clients participate in a short in-person assessment interview.

The intake workers (mental health counselors) ask about information related to traumatic events and also current complaints. They explain our services, issues of confidentiality, clients’ role in the therapy and then complete a basic assessment checklist to determine whether the client is eligible for our services.

If the individual meets initial screening, s/he receives an appointment for a formal intake. Then based on the assessment and the context, the client will receive services either as individual sessions or through group therapies.

For the group, the counselors and sometimes with the physiotherapists make a group of 8-10 clients. After that, the counselors and physiotherapists facilitate group psychotherapeutic sessions and trauma –focused physiotherapy sessions.

The interventions are basic counseling with the components of CBT, Common Elements Treatment Approach (CETA), the CVT’s “Restorative Hope and Dignity” combined with trauma –focused physiotherapy, and “Guided Self-Change Program” for substance abuse problems. Some clients will be offered individual sessions as well.

The mental health counselor scores depression and anxiety based on the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist, and PTSD symptoms based on the Harvard Trauma Questionnaires. The first intake session usually takes around 2 hours. The mental health counselors and physiotherapists, and their supervisors as well as mental health director meet to discuss the treatment plan, which is developed with the full participation of the client. The Director of the Wchan’s TRTC is involved in the treatment plan and will be kept updated. For assessing client improvement progress, the HTQ and HSC are repeated at eight – sixteen week intervals depending on the types of interventions provided.

In addition to those, assessment for physical health, functions, psychological symptoms and safety will be done through using a specific form called “General Health and Wellbeing Assessment Form”.

At the end and after completing therapy but before discharge, each client asked to fill in a form called “Client Satisfaction Form”. This form is to tell the organization if the client was satisfied with the services s/he received, how much s/he got benefit from the services, does s/he can use the taught skills and knowledge for the future for dealing with her / his stresses, etc.