A narrative exposure treatment as intervention in a refugee camp : two case reports

Abstract

Psychosocial services in refugee camps need workable guidelines on how to treat posttraumatic symptoms that result from organised violence. In two severely traumatised Kosovar refugees living in a Macedonian refugee camp during the Balkan War, we applied a Narrative Exposure Treatment (NET). NET is a pragmatic shortterm approach that integrates effective therapeutic components deriving from Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and Testimony Therapy. Success was evaluated by clinical examination and the Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale (PDS). In both patients one to three sessions of NET were enough to afford considerable relief, although some PTSD symptoms remained. Our experience indicates that Narrative Exposure is a promising and realistic approach for the acute treatment of even severely traumatised refugees living in camps. In addition, it can provide valid testimonies about human rights violations, without humiliating the witness.