Psychosocial Support for Refugees

Help ensure psychosocial care for refugees with your donation! 

War, torture and flight can leave traces and severely affect the health of refugees. The people who seek protection from persecution and war in Germany are largely left alone with their psychological injuries. In the first 36 months, they have no regular access to the German health care system and can only see a doctor in case of acute pain. 

The political discussion is also currently revolving around the exclusion and marginalization of refugees. Solidary structures and strong networks are more important than ever for the work with traumatized refugees! 

As BAfF, the umbrella organization of psychosocial centers for survivors of war, torture and flight, we have been campaigning for 28 years for comprehensive and low-threshold care for refugees. Those who are sick or traumatized due to their experiences in their home country or due to flight MUST receive psychosocial support or a place on a treatment program quickly. 

Currently, 51 psychosocial centers in Germany are organized under the umbrella of BAfF as a federal association. The centers offer a low-threshold, multiprofessionally organized range of services. The teams are diverse and consist of social workers, legal, (psycho)therapeutic, medical and other professionals. 

However, the latest data report on work in mental health centers again shows a large gap in care: In 2022, just round about 25,681 clients* could be served. If one were to assume, according to studies on mental illnesses among refugees, that around a third of all refugees living in Germany would need to be assessed for treatment and, if necessary, receive care, the psychosocial centers and their cooperation partners were only able to cover just 3.1 percent of the potential need for care in 2022. 

Here's how your donation can help 

With your donation, we can continue to make the work of the psychosocial centers visible, for example with the help of our press and public relations work. We promote the exchange of experience and knowledge in human rights work. Through our demands on politics and administration, we advocate for the observance of human rights for refugees. For example, we want to achieve a legal right to the assumption of interpreter costs (language and cultural mediation) and a claim for benefits for statutory health insurance regardless of residence status. We also organize further education and training in the field of trauma and refugee work and support volunteers and professionals.