Directors: Dr. Patrick Alecian, Anahit Dasseux-Ter Mesropian, Dr. Sevan Minassian, Dr. Irène Nigolian

The Covid-19 pandemic, the Artsakh war of 2020, Azerbaijan’s constant attacks on the Syunik region and the blockade of the Latchin corridor, which culminated in the exodus of most of the Armenian population of Artsakh in September 2023, have made the issue of psychosocial support vital. For decades, the populations of the Syunik and Artsakh regions have endured heavy psychological trauma that must be addressed.

In Armenia, professionals in this field are few and far between and the very idea of seeking psychological and psychiatric care is often taboo.

Since the beginning of its activity, Santé Arménie has identified, trained and supported psychologists and psychiatrists in Armenia and Artsakh, thus offering the civilian and military populations psychological support in line with international standards.

Against a backdrop of constant threat of renewed armed conflict, a months-long blockade and the forced exodus from Artsakh, Santé Arménie employs psychologists and psychiatrists who are trained and supervised by their European volunteer peers to offer individual or group consultations to the population.

In 2023, Santé Arménie’s treatment for psychological trauma was deployed in three areas in the Syunik region and in Artsakh:

• ▪ In Goris, at the outpatient physical therapy and neuro-orthopedic rehabilitation facility created by Santé Arménie and in direct collaboration with the facility’s other activities, a psychologist sees patients on a daily basis.
• ▪ Two other psychologists employed by Santé Arménie offer individual consultations in Goris and also work with groups of teenagers at a school in the town of Sisian. When needed, a psychiatrist employed part-time by Santé Arménie offers care to patients
• In Artsakh, two mobile teams operated in Martakert and Martuni until September 2023. These mobile teams, composed of two psychologists from the Empathia Consultation Center in Stepanakert, went to border villages to care for families affected by grief and trauma resulting from the war. When needed, a psychiatrist intervened. With the exodus of the population from Artsakh in September 2023, these mobile teams did not stop working. In fact, their activities intensified and they continue to work with Artsakh refugees in the Ararat region of Armenia.

As part of an interuniversity agreement signed in June 2021 between Paris-Est Créteil University and Yerevan State Medical University, at the initiative of Professor Jean-Marc Baleyte, a child psychiatrist, university professor and hospital practitioner at the Intercommunal Hospital of Créteil, Santé Arménie is working on the creation of a chair of child psychiatry in Yerevan in order to develop a training program for young Armenian graduates and psychiatrists. The aim is to fill the gap in child psychiatry training in Armenia.
Armenian professors of psychiatry from the Yerevan State Medical University, as well as young Armenian psychologists and psychiatrists, currently benefit from accelerated training in child psychiatry and internships at Paris-Est Créteil University.

Santé Arménie also participated in the post-doctoral teaching program in psychology at Mesrop Mashtots University in Artsakh. As part of this program, several Santé Arménie members were teaching both theoretical and practical courses in clinical psychopathology affecting children, adolescents and adults.