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The cumulative impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, operation Guardian of the Walls, the political and social polarization in Israeli society, and the current events following the October 7 massacre and Iron Swords war have damaged the resilience and mental health of multitudes of Israelis at various levels and intensities.
"The October 7 events and the Iron Swords War have created extensive, complex, and multifarious damage in people and relationships," says Efrat Stern, Director of Israel Unlimited, a JDC branch that promotes independent living and autonomy of people with disabilities in the community. "It is a dramatic crisis that must be addressed immediately." Indeed, data collected about the current and ongoing war reveals the intensity of the damage. According to a study conducted in March by the Israel Pediatric Association and Goshen Community Child Health and Well-Being organization, we are seeing these trends after five months since the outbreak of the war:
- 75.5% of children experience mental distress
- 54% of children experience anxiety
- 30% of parents experienced severe mental distress and anxiety yet only 14% sought help
However, according to Stern, the treatments and solutions offered today are largely inaccessible, unavailable, or insufficiently promoted. The level of the population's present mental health struggles necessitates an expansion and diversification of the various available interventions. "The emotional distress within the Israeli population is a significant challenge that the State must deal with. The entire country's population is currently at risk," she explains.
Efrat Stern, Director of Israel Unlimited / Credit: Arik Sultan
In routine times, the JDC develops solutions to the most pressing socio-economic challenges in Israeli society in collaboration with the Israeli government, local authorities, and the social, business, and philanthropic sectors. Since October 7, the JDC's emergency system has helped more than 100,000 Israelis from the most vulnerable strata in society, provided emergency support and professional tools to around 30,000 social professionals from various fields and supported more than 1,000 small businesses and industries in distress.
As part of the JDC emergency operations in the north and south of Israel, it became more acutely evident that along with the serious shortage of mental health professionals, there is also a critical shortage in the availability, accessibility, and range of solutions, as well as data sources about them. Therefore, JDC Israel decided to transform its work with mental health and resilience into a flagship focus with the aim to reach 80% of the general population. Achieving this goal is possible through expanding the scope and variety of mental health services and making them accessible to the entire population, promoting communal, familial, and individual interventions, and developing supportive infrastructures.
To meet the ambitious goal whereby the majority of the public in Israel can receive a range of mental health solutions, the organization carried out extensive research and developed a road map to chart the necessary actions.
Reaching the vast majority of the population and formulating a quality standard
Fostering convenient and customized access to diverse professional services for the entire population was set as the key parameter in the organization's road map. One of the first solutions developed in this capacity is the "Nafshi" Portal. This digital platform offers a variety of therapies, group and community interventions, self-help tools, and more. The JDC reported that the various solutions offered on the "Nafshi" portal have been professionally tested and validated by the best experts in the field. The platform allows every person to find an appropriate solution according to various parameters such as population group, age, type of assistance required and more. These include helplines, self-help tools, educational content, and online home access assistance. The platform facilitates reaching large segments of the population and developing new methods like self-diagnosis, self-treatment and more. All these features combined help to provide quick and effective response in many of the cases.
Furthermore, the JDC advised that, to date, thousands of Israelis have been assisted by the services offered on the portal, and usage levels are expected to grow significantly. M., a mother of a 7-year-old boy, is one of them: "About six weeks after the war started, I realized that my son was struggling, and I did not know how to help him on my own," she said. "He was diagnosed with ADHD and anxiety, and the war made it worse. The alarms startled him, and he refused to leave home except to go to school. In addition, his father was called up for reserve duty in Gaza, and everything he heard about Hamas intensified his anxieties. I heard about the 'Nafshi' portal at work and decided to check it out. I found many different types of resources available there; among other things, many online resources are designed to help parents talk with their children about the war - digital guides, relaxation techniques, printable children's stories, and a hotline for parental guidance. These free resources helped me care for my son on my own - without the need for private therapy sessions."
The widespread use of technological means requires stringent quality checks of all products. Ronny Sapir, Director of Data & Digital Innovation at JDC, explains: "A British study from last year tested the quality of digital health tools and uncovered rather alarming data. The researchers analyzed 600 of the most popular mental health apps using a wide variety of conventional criteria like quality, usability, privacy protection, professionalism, and more. It demonstrated that less than 30% of these apps met the minimum threshold of these criteria. A quality threshold is mandatory due to the potential damage such apps may cause."
Ronny Sapir, Director of Data & Digital Innovation at JDC / Credit: Arik Sultan
The JDC has already started collaborating with relevant parties in that field-the government, civil society, and others-to formulate a quality standard for services in this domain by developing agreed-upon and professionally valid standards.
Early detection may prevent deterioration
"Studies conducted by the Brookdale Institute in 2009 and 2017, indicate a concerning and consistent pattern among adults: 65% of those who experience mental distress do not seek therapy. A 2019 study entitled 'Young People in Mental Health Care' revealed that this figure also applies to adolescents. This phenomenon is serious because the lack of proper treatment for emotional distress may deteriorate into a problem with one's ability to function and even morbidity" says Shirit Pearl Levy, Head of Resilience and Mental Health at JDC Israel Unlimited. Pearl Levy continues: "Early detection of populations and individuals who need treatment would allow us to apply more tailored solutions and invest in comprehensive interventions quickly and efficiently."
Shirit Pearl Levy, Head of Resilience and Mental Health at JDC Israel Unlimited / Credit: Arik Sultan
To this end, the JDC partnered with the 'Mifrasim' Institute at the Tel Aviv-Yafo Academic College. Both bodies operate together to develop training for municipal service providers who have daily contact with the residents to detect populations who need assistance. "Providing these professionals with assessment and early detection tools may significantly reduce damage and prevent deterioration," explains Ms. Pearl Levy.
A multi-sectoral national initiative
The current reality mandates advanced tools to make informed decisions regarding investment in mental health. The JDC initiated the development of digital dashboards and scalability indicators to monitor the national situation, facilitate proper budgeting, and construct a broad policy incorporating prevention mechanisms and mental health support. The organization believes that synchronized activity between government officials, civil society, the business sector, and academia, to name a few, will make it possible to understand the needs in real-time and provide a tailored response to all - something that is crucial for routine and emergency rehabilitation processes.
More partners from Israel and overseas joined this initiative, including the Israeli government, the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, the Horwitz and Zusman Family Foundations and others. Given the initiative's comprehensive scope, the JDC also intends to further expand the scope of participation. "The challenge is enormous but dear to our hearts," concludes Stern. She simultaneously mentions the JDC's activity, which focuses on providing more systemic solutions - including developing metrics, formulating policy, and expanding the basket of non-clinical technological, communal, and educational solutions, which are not configured as a one-on-one response. "We do not have all the answers, and insofar as we broaden our circle of partners in leading this move - be it government entities, civil society, the business sector and philanthropists - the more change we can generate, which the citizens of Israel so desperately need."
*The information in this article does not constitute qualified medical advice and is not intended to guide the public or serve as medical advice. It should not be considered a substitute for individual or other medical advice appropriate to each person's data and needs.