Child psychologists to work at refugee shelter near Grodno

Psychologists from Grodno together with UNICEF representatives have arrived at the refugee shelter to provide psychological support to children, BelTA has learned.

Refugees have been stranded at the Belarus-Poland border for 33 days already. Now they are living in the temporary accommodation facility set up at the logistics hub near the Bruzgi checkpoint. There are many children among them.

“It is very important to offer them psychological help, even if the need for such help is not very obvious. Ten highly qualified psychologists trained in providing psychological support in emergencies under UNICEF programs have arrived at the shelter from Grodno,” Ruslan Abramchik, head of the Main Education Department of the Grodno Oblast Executive Committee, said.

There are plans to conduct a kind of census of the child population at the refugee shelter together with UNICEF. This will help accurately determine the children’s age, native language, educational and other needs.

“We see that children are playing, having fun. They have food, warm clothes, volunteers come here to entertain them,” Ruslan Abramchik said.

He added that setting up a school is not considered. First of all, children will be provided with psychological support and other types of assistance. So far, no psychological emergencies have been reported.

BelTA