Coming from Afar and Rediscovering Oneself: Group Intervention for Immigrant and Refugee Women Having Experienced Violence

Objectives This paper has a clinical perspective and presents an innovative intervention that could be offered in different institutions and practice environments. The object here is a group intervention addressed specifically to immigrant and refugee women having experienced different forms of violence. The consequences of being exposed to intentional and dehumanizing violence, paired with the challenges associated with migration and forced exile, can fragilize the individuals and challenge their capacity to adapt. Even though psychological and psychosocial support in the years following their arrival could be beneficial, immigrants and refugees rarely use institutional services, and experts point out that the services are not tailored to them. In that respect stems the importance of promoting the development of more meaningful interventions for immigrants and refugees, in accordance with the principle of equity and equality of chances to have access to appropriate services, but also to better equip the specialists by giving them access to safe and culturally sensitive interventions. Following that perspective, a group intervention for immigrants and refugees having experienced violence was created in 2010 with the collaboration of researchers from l'IUPLSSS and social workers from CIUSSS de l'Estrie-Chus. Method Firstly, this article aims to present this group intervention. Innovative features of the proposed program will be highlighted, followed by an overview of the clinical and empirical supports that recommend the use of groups and art to intervene with immigrants and refugees. A more detailed description of the intervention will follow, describing the objectives of the intervention as well as the intervention framework, including some necessary components to assure the therapeutic reach of the groups and the establishment of a safe space. Secondly, the article presents a brief summary of the preliminary results of a current study aiming to evaluate the impacts of the intervention. During this study, qualitative and quantitative data was collected from 3 groups (n = 17) and analyzed with content analysis and non-parametric analyses to measure the changes between pre and post intervention. Results The results of the qualitative and quantitative analyses show that women report positive changes at the end of the group, namely in regard to post-traumatic stress symptoms and different dimensions of their well-being. Conclusion To conclude, the advantages and limits of this intervention will be discussed, but also its relevance for the practice environments. Even if it isn't the only answer for the intervention in a post-violence context, it consists of a good option for providing adapted services to the reality and needs of immigrants and refugees.