(from left) SELAH professionals Alex Altshuler and Yael Mekonen.

UJA-Federation's Caring Commission went on a fact-finding mission earlier this month to identify areas of need in Israel. Part of their visit was spent learning about the Israel Trauma Coalition's (ITC) work in providing trauma relief services to communities in northern Israel, which were hard hit by the conflict with Hezbollah last summer.

ITC, which was founded with UJA-Federation of New York's assistance, works to enhance the resiliency of Israeli society, and to support the development of Israel's trauma response capacity. The Coalition includes over 40 organizations ? among them the Israel Center for the Treatment of Psychotrauma, Community Stress Prevention Center, Hadassah Trauma Treatment Center, ERAN (an emotional first aid hotline), NATAL (Israel Center for Victims of Terror and War), AMCHA (an organization for Holocaust survivors), and SELAH (Israel Crisis Management Center), as well as other general hospitals in Israel.

Arab Population Unprepared
Professor Mooli Lahad, director of the Community Stress Prevention Center in Kiryat Shmona, stated that one of the war's lessons was that Israel's Arab population is painfully lacking much-needed trauma services. As a result, ITC has initiated several programs to help reach out to this population, including collaboration with the Israel Ministry of Health to provide psychosocial training for Arab professionals, as well as a psycho-trauma center to treat children in Arabic.

So far, 82 Arab professionals have benefited from the free training course and are now using their skills in their work with the elderly, children, special needs population, and truant adolescents.

To see the programs in action, the Caring Commission mission visited Mrar, a village near Tiberias populated by Druze, Christians, and Muslims. During the war, the village suffered 65 rocket attacks and the death of two female residents.

Mission participants heard the personal story one family, whose two young daughters, ages 5 and 11, began to exhibit symptoms of trauma and were treated at the Mrar psycho-trauma center a week after the rockets first hit. They became withdrawn, were unwilling to leave the house, and were unable to sleep at night. At first apprehensive about seeking treatment for their daughters, the parents soon saw that the sessions their children received at the Mrar center were helping and their daughters' symptoms lessened.

The mother, a kindergarten teacher, has now learned to recognize trauma symptoms in children and has referred some of her young charges for treatment at the center as well. She now reports that at the end of the academic year they are all doing well and are emotionally ready to enter first grade.

Bringing Hope to the Elderly
The Caring Commission also learned about ITC programs for new immigrants, especially the elderly. Ruth Bar-On, director of SELAH, said that her organization reaches out to new immigrants who have been hit by tragedy, whether by terror, accident, illness, or family violence. Selah provides culturally sensitive, emotional, and practical support, including purchases, services, and financial aid for these families.

Alex Altshuler, coordinator for SELAH's project in Kiryat Shmona, said that he works mainly with elderly immigrants from the former Soviet Union. "It's not only about providing glasses or dental care, but also bringing hope to these people. We visit them in their homes, listen to their pain, and try to provide support as best we can." He said that his staff makes follow-up calls, and if further intervention is required, they refer clients to appropriate treatment. Alex said that these visits have helped to relieve the profound feeling of abandonment that the immigrants felt during the conflict with Lebanon.

Yael Mekonen, an immigrant from Ethiopia, told the Caring Commission of her experiences assisting Ethiopian families in times of stress. Noting the cultural sensitivity required in dealing with new immigrants, Yael told the mission participants the story of a single Ethiopian mother of five who became frightened and confused when the rockets fell in Safed. One year later, she and her family are still suffering from the effects. One of her children had been given a toy to occupy her during the days and weeks spent in a bomb shelter. This young child still talks to the toy about the war. Her mother and older siblings try to hide the toy in an attempt to "help her forget the trauma."

Throughout the visit, Caring Commission members had the opportunity to ask questions and participate in open, honest dialogue with beneficiaries. Suzi Jaffe, chair of the Caring Commission's Trauma Task Force, said "Nothing can replace hearing directly from the beneficiaries of trauma services about their own, very individual stories: from the non-Hebrew speaking Russian, alone in her apartment for 33 days without medicine, to the Israeli-Arab family who today understand how much better equipped they are to deal with trauma than other family members who did not seek services."

Talia Levanon, director of the Israel Trauma Coalition, said that ITC is now engaged in formulating a four-year comprehensive rehabilitation program for northern Israel. "Amidst the pain and anger resulting from the conflict with Lebanon has emerged an opportunity for the ITC to achieve its vision: that of creating a continuum of care based on collaboration of all service providers. No one organization or government agency can manage a job of this scope and magnitude on its own. We are indeed stronger together." Talia believes that bringing together the expertise of the ITC, in collaboration with the Prime Minister's Office, government ministries, and other non-governmental organizations will revolutionize service provision in Israel, while strengthening resilience and preparedness.