Saturday 29 April 2017

Conference Refugee Studies

https://soundcloud.com/refugeestudiescentre/rsc-conference-2017-session-i-room-1-restricted-mobility-of-extremely-vulnerable-migrants?in=refugeestudiescentre/sets/rsc-conference-2017-beyond-crisis 
Busy weekend for me as catching up on the Refugee Studies conference that was held in Oxford in March of this year.  Beyond Crisis: Rethinking Refugee Studies.  A very packed programme with international speakers and stories and projects from around the world.  For those of you that have been following this Family Link Up story you will know I had submitted a paper to present to this conference.  It was a detailed look at the Shell Shock deep post traumatic stress that I have been counselling in Dante.  The themes and patterns so relevant for our care planning and pathways of support for refugees.  The conference was not just on Syrian refugees but Global displacement of people from many areas of conflict, poverty and pain.  

My paper was one of many good quality ones; and listening to the opening introduction there is no doubt all papers submitted were of good quality and focusing on a very important facets of refugee support. So the rejection of this was not a negative. However, it would have given me good exposure to show my Family Link Up project and whilst a carer/befriender my clinical background helps me understand more and see the care planning required. 

I have also submitted the paper to the nursing journals and also suggest we have a special edition of journal to look at war and conflict and effects on people the types of injuries to nurse and the mental pain to care for.  But I have had no uptake as yet for publication or action to my suggestion. 

This is my opening to my paper 
A Syrian refugee’s pain of war
A counselling narrative analysis
Author: Marjorie Bahhaj BSc RN RM  (May 2016)
Over the past few months I have had opportunity to counsel a Syrian refugee online and have managed to meet with him to help him on his pathway to healing and regain strength.

Over our time of sharing I have been on many journeys into the dark vile world of man’s inhumanity to man as he opened up on the memories of the pain.  The pictures and videos I have seen, have been uncensored and I have researched further to understand more of how this man was feeling.  My journey took me into our UK parliament committee rooms on study days to look at the whole situation in Syria and why Syrians are fleeing en masse, for us now to address the biggest refugee crisis in history. I now actively campaign for refugees and am involved with the APPG – the All Party Parliamentary Group on Syria.
So let me share the journey that my refugee has shared with me for us to understand the need for support and healing of post-traumatic stress. The most of all feeling and expressions in my refugee patient is that of constant feeling of being chased and also that of loss and grief with this the constant flash backs to the horror seen felt and heard.  So all of his senses have been bombarded with horror that has led to the whole of his being bearing an imprint of the pain. But these feelings are complex in nature of the experience and the distorted life that is now apparent. A distortion from the fact that this now is an everyday occurrence.  He may have fled the country but his desire to regain his country and remain an activist means each day he is seeing uncensored first hand reports from social media capture that activists within the battle zone are sending. 

The journey is expressed and there is an interactive report of refugee thought and expressions and the nurse counsellor response and analysis.. So clear facets are seen with action planning for healing and rebuild of broken lives. 

IF you would like me come and speak at a conference or present my work to a group contact me marjoriebahhaj@gmail.com

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