Who Helps the Helpers? Mental Health and Psychosocial Support for Frontline Responders in Northeast Nigeria

Deborah Christopher Waba, a nurse who worked for two years in the weapon-wounded ward at the State Specialist Hospital, Maiduguri knows the feeling of being overwhelmed all too well. During the last mass casualty incident, she and a single colleague were left to face a sudden flood of victims.

“We were only two nurses on duty, and this made the wards overcrowded instantly,” Deborah says. “We found it difficult to concentrate. Controlling people going in and out made it impossible to attend to patients properly.”

The MHPSS sessions became a turning point. “I had the opportunity to tell my colleagues my stressors. There are negative and positive coping mechanisms,” she explains. “The positive is to have time for yourself, rest, and talk with your family. Negative coping? Some of us do it without knowing - like self-medicating with paracetamol for a little headache or doing things that can harm our health.”

Now, Deborah practices deliberate recovery. “When I go home, I take my bath, rest a little, and chat. Sometimes I sit alone, read, and meditate. That is how I cope.”