Special Projects

Protecting Children in Disasters

 

UPDATE: Read how the resources from this project have proved vital in the Sichuan earthquake mental health response

 

UPDATE: Listen to a radio program about AAMH's involvement in the Sichuan earthquake mental health response


This project is being supported through AusAID’s Humanitarian Aid program.

 

Natural and man-made disasters can have a devastating effect on people's mental as well as physical health (read more). The Protecting Children in Disasters project recognises that children are often the most vulnerable population group affected following a major disaster. The current project in China focuses on the needs of primary school children at up to twelve months post disaster and aims to provide support for their care-givers and communities.

 

The project:

 

  • has been developed collaboratively by Australian and Chinese mental health experts, in partnership with local teachers and other community health workers in disaster prone areas.
  • provides clear simple guidelines and delivery mechanisms for local community leaders who may have no access to stable, comprehensive and well-resourced community infrastructure
  • enables prompt access for caregivers to support the most vulnerable disaster victims
  • is being evaluated by Institute of International Studies, University of Technology, Sydney

 

The project materials have been designed to be flexible and transferable within China and to serve as prototypes for use in other communities in the Asian region.

 

Stage One of the Protecting Children in Disasters project has been independently evaluated. Download the report [pdf, 459 kb, 12 pages].

 

The Vice Chancellor of Melbourne University and Chair of the 2020 Summit, Prof. Glyn Davis, recently praised the efforts of AAMH for their contribution in protecting the post-disaster mental health of the children of Sichuan. View the Vice Chancellor's comments.


Read a speech by AAMH Co-Director A/Prof Chee Ng, on the work by AAMH in China and in particular Sichuan.

 

Read more about AAMH's work following the Sichuan earthquake...

 

Photo of Children in Disasters Training with Margaret Goding

 
L->R: Prof. Louise Edwards, Project Evaluator from University of Technology Sydney and Ms Margaret Goding, AAMH Executive Committee with children at Xinhua Primary School, Hangzhou (one of the pilot sites for the Protecting Children in Disasters train-the-trainer program)

 

 Further information about this project can be found on our China page.