The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

New treatment approaches: integrating new media in the treatment of war and torture victims

New treatment approaches: integrating new media in the treatment of war and torture victims
New treatment approaches: integrating new media in the treatment of war and torture victims
The diagnostic process and treatment of victims of war and torture is associated with a number of difficulties. This article will provide an overview of three different approaches on how the new media may be integrated into the treatment of survivors of torture and war to face some of the challenges. Illiteracy is a common problem and makes it difficult to apply standardized psychological assessment procedures. Also, the majority of survivors of torture and war do not have access to any psychotherapeutic treatment due to geographical limitations or limitations concerning psychotherapeutic treatment capacity. Furthermore, chronic psychological disorders such as (complex) Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are often seen with comorbid chronic pain disorders, which present a therapeutic challenge. The Treatment Center for Torture Victims, Berlin, in cooperation with the University of Zurich, developed a number of approaches to address these challenges: 1) MultiCASI - to standardize the diagnostic process an audiovisual diagnostic tool was developed which allows illiterate individuals to answer standardized psychological questionnaires without the help of interpreters; 2) A virtual treatment center for posttraumatic stress disorder for traumatized patients in Iraq and other Arab speaking postconflict countries; 3) Utility of Biofeedback (BF) in chronic (somatoform) pain and in traumatized patients: to address the chronic pain syndrome presented by most survivors, a biofeedback- supported cognitive-behavioral therapy approach was developed and successfully tested in a pilot study.
victims of torture and war, PTSD, pain, assessment, treatment, computer
1018-8185
67-78
Knaevelsrud, Christine
aafd079d-77d2-43a6-8043-dc62736db6de
Wagner, Birgit
9dbfdcee-6b2a-47d4-a863-242fc66507ee
Karl, Anke
7f091050-641c-4658-a247-785cfd194c3d
Mueller, Julia
aca86dac-af08-4323-ab46-2c8628989489
Knaevelsrud, Christine
aafd079d-77d2-43a6-8043-dc62736db6de
Wagner, Birgit
9dbfdcee-6b2a-47d4-a863-242fc66507ee
Karl, Anke
7f091050-641c-4658-a247-785cfd194c3d
Mueller, Julia
aca86dac-af08-4323-ab46-2c8628989489

Knaevelsrud, Christine, Wagner, Birgit, Karl, Anke and Mueller, Julia (2007) New treatment approaches: integrating new media in the treatment of war and torture victims. Torture, 17 (2), 67-78.

Record type: Article

Abstract

The diagnostic process and treatment of victims of war and torture is associated with a number of difficulties. This article will provide an overview of three different approaches on how the new media may be integrated into the treatment of survivors of torture and war to face some of the challenges. Illiteracy is a common problem and makes it difficult to apply standardized psychological assessment procedures. Also, the majority of survivors of torture and war do not have access to any psychotherapeutic treatment due to geographical limitations or limitations concerning psychotherapeutic treatment capacity. Furthermore, chronic psychological disorders such as (complex) Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are often seen with comorbid chronic pain disorders, which present a therapeutic challenge. The Treatment Center for Torture Victims, Berlin, in cooperation with the University of Zurich, developed a number of approaches to address these challenges: 1) MultiCASI - to standardize the diagnostic process an audiovisual diagnostic tool was developed which allows illiterate individuals to answer standardized psychological questionnaires without the help of interpreters; 2) A virtual treatment center for posttraumatic stress disorder for traumatized patients in Iraq and other Arab speaking postconflict countries; 3) Utility of Biofeedback (BF) in chronic (somatoform) pain and in traumatized patients: to address the chronic pain syndrome presented by most survivors, a biofeedback- supported cognitive-behavioral therapy approach was developed and successfully tested in a pilot study.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: 2007
Additional Information: Thematic issue focused on the IX IRCT Symposium on Torture.
Keywords: victims of torture and war, PTSD, pain, assessment, treatment, computer

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 48066
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/48066
ISSN: 1018-8185
PURE UUID: 0675bf10-74ff-4aa7-b2d5-8166d687bf62

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 24 Aug 2007
Last modified: 22 Jul 2022 20:56

Export record

Contributors

Author: Christine Knaevelsrud
Author: Birgit Wagner
Author: Anke Karl
Author: Julia Mueller

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×