Humanitarian Projects and Growth of EMDR Therapy in Asia

Abstract

This article focuses on the accomplishments of humanitarian projects in Asia using eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. The main thrust of EMDR humanitarian assistance programs has been to train local clinicians to provide EMDR to individuals suffering from the disaster. The article highlights the training projects and the experience of using EMDR therapy after earthquakes in China, India, Indonesia, and Pakistan; after tsunamis in Japan, India, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka; and after accidents and terror attacks in Korea and Pakistan. Detailed descriptions are provided about the responses to the 2001 earthquake in Gujarat; the 2004 tsunami in India, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka; the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan; the 2008 earthquake in China; and the 2011 tsunami in Japan. In addition, the article discusses how Asian EMDR therapists are working together to provide training, respond to crises, and establish professional standards, so that EMDR therapy can be established in Asia and integrated into regular practice. Further, this article describes the creation of EMDR Asia, which brought several Asian countries together and share the development of EMDR therapy in their countries. The challenges faced by EMDR Asia today are discussed in detail.

Psychosocial interventions for children and adolescents after man-made and natural disasters: a meta-analysis and systematic review

“…However, there was a significant heterogeneity between studies ( Q = 119.69, p < 0.0001). Effect sizes ranged from g = −0.17 (de Roos et al 2011, comparison of CBT and EMDR) to g = 1.41 (Mehrotra, 2014). Classroom-based interventions contributed most to the variance (44.69%), followed by studies on EMDR (14.05%), one study on calligraphy (10.94%), CBT (10.47%) and KIDNET (1.70%).…”

“…While EMDR and KIDNET had shown significantly higher effect sizes than classroom-based interventions in pre–post comparisons, those differences were no longer significant. On the contrary, results showed smaller effect sizes than classroom-based interventions (except for one study evaluating EMDR; Mehrotra, 2014).…”

“…This often results in important data not being published and made available to the public. Unpublished data were received and included for six studies (Jarero et al 2006 b , c , d , 2008; Chung et al 2014; Mehrotra, 2014). This initial search yielded 5575 studies, of which 37 were included in statistical analyses (see Fig.…”

Treating implicit trauma: a quasi-experimental study comparing the EMDR Therapy Standard Protocol with a ‘Blind 2 Therapist’ version within a trauma capacity building project in Northern Iraq

“…Over the last 20 years, the development of EMDR Therapy in LMIC has occurred in response to humanitarian activity or targeted trauma capacity building in response to natural or human disasters (Adúriz et al 2009;Eichfeld et al 2019;Farrell et al 2011, Farrell and Keenan 2013, Farrell 2014Fernandez et al 2014;Gelbach and Davis 2007;Hasanovic 2016;Jarero et al 2008;Konuk and Zat 2015;Matthess et al 2019;Maxfield 2014;Mehrotra 2014;Shapiro 2012;Shapiro 2014aShapiro , 2014bSilver et al 2005).…”

Longitudinal Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial on the Provision of the EMDR-IGTP-OTS to Refugee Minors in Valencia, Spain

“…This protocol has been used in its original format or with adaptations to suit the cultural circumstances, in numerous places around the world for thousands of survivors of natural or man-made disasters [25][26][27][28]. These include anecdotal reports (29)(30); nine pilot field studies with both children and adults after natural mass disasters in Mexico, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Colombia and Venezuela [31][32][33]; case reports and field studies have documented its effectiveness with children and adults after natural or man-made disasters [34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]; during ongoing war trauma [44]; during ongoing geopolitical crisis [45]; with women sexually assaulted in the Congo [46]; with war refugee children in Germany [47]; with children and adolescents who were victims of severe interpersonal violence [48][49][50]; with non-governmental organization (NGO´s) staff members who provide care to children and adolescents with severe interpersonal trauma [51]; with caregivers of patients with dementia [52]; with Spanish-speaking Latina survivors of domestic violence [53]; with refugee minors in the UK, Turkey, Ethiopia [54][55][56]; and as an emergency treatment to children survivors of the November 13, 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris [57].…”