To build Haiti back better will require sustained interest and support from outside of Haiti. In addition to addressing basic needs, help should also include the kinds of support that will allow the Haitian people and government to re-build and design their own, better, future. It will especially require a long-term effort to address emotional and psychosocial needs. The psychosocial and mental health effects of the earthquake will have devastating and longstanding impact on any effort to rebati.
Rebati.org is a partnership of community and professional Haitian organizations outside of Haiti, mental health and psychosocial providers and community caregivers inside of it, and academic, medical and psychological centers. It is our goal to help those outside of Haiti with mental health expertise, organize themselves. They can not only volunteer direct services in the country, but help train current and future workers in Haiti (whether mental health professionals, teachers, clergy, nurses) to build back a better, sustained, ability to manage mental health and psychosocial needs.
These efforts are specifically developed to closely cooperate with the official coordination process for addressing mental health issues across the major relief agencies, managed through the Government of Haiti, and with UN and related agencies. Bringing together and being able to easily reach the widest range of providers and skills, can enhance the link between people, and needs, as they evolve.
In addition, we hope to provide an additional way to help connect communities or groups of Haitians outside of Haiti with clinicians and mental health supporters from their own community to assist in addressing local mental health and psychosocial needs.