Self Help Plus and ASSIST BI in Uganda - Successful Mental Health Intervention for Refugees

Since 2018, we’ve piloted and evaluated Self Help Plus (SH+), a low intensity intervention developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for managing stress and copying with adversity. It consists of 5 audio-recorded sessions and illustrated self-help book delivered in large workshops by a minimally trained lay provider. SH+ builds on evidence of guided self-help interventions and modern stress management techniques. It has been shown to reduce psychological distress and prevent the onset of mental disorders.
In 2019, we adapted SH+ for use among South Sudanese refugee men in Rhino camp by including case study examples of alcohol use. We implemented the adapted version of the SH+ intervention together with another WHO intervention called ASSIST (Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test). The ASSIST helps to identify the risk score for the alcohol and substances used by the individuals from various cultures by categorizing the ASSIST scores into a lower, moderate or
high-risk category.
From this intervention, the participants acquired five core skills, including grounding, meaning being aware of the present moment; unhooking, that is to say noticing difficult emotions and letting them go; acting on values, making room for difficult emotions and being kind to oneself and others.