Offer concrete help for psychological well-being of the people who lived the last flood events in Tuscany, Emilia Romagna and Marche. This is the objective of the second edition of the project “To live better” of Enpap, the national welfare and assistance body for psychologists, which promotes access to psychological interventions for anxiety and depression, and was presented today in the Regional Council in Florence
1,600 psychological consultations for citizens of flooded areas
The project, entirely financed by Enpap, carried out in collaboration with the most prestigious Italian universities and which this year makes use of the collaboration of the FIMMG (Italian Federation of General Practitioners) is open to all people, but to citizens who have experienced a traumatic event like that of latest floods 1,600 complete psychological counseling or psychotherapy interventions will be offered, 600 will concern the Tuscan provinces of Florence, Livorno, Pisa, Pistoia and Prato. Vouchers for free treatments with psychologists can be used by accessing the site.
“The intervention is mediated by a portal called vivemeglio.enpap.it and offers a series of free services for citizens, with a screening on the state of psychological well-being. But there are also a number of self-help manuals – explains the president of Enpap, Felice Damiano Torricelli – for people who live in the provinces flooded since April 18th we offer direct consultancy from our psychologists and psychotherapists for free interventions to the treatment of anxiety and depressionand on the basis of the results of this screening. An in-person intervention mediated by general practitioners in these areas.”
Treatment paths especially for young people
“We expect that above all people will be involved young people aged 20 to 24 and 25 to 29, who already in the first edition of the project are those who turned most to our psychological support services for the prevention of anxiety and depression – specifies Ada Moscarella of Enpap, contact person for the project for Tuscany – two age groups particularly affected by the flood event with many critical issues that emerged: from the crisis of the planning, to the confidence in the future, up to the social and family relationships put in crisis by the flood which, by damaging their homes, often forced them to change their life plans by returning to live with their parents or having to host family members whose homes were damaged”.
The floods that also hit Tuscany caused victims and caused economic damage widespread psychological difficulties with concerns that are still present, which can lead to chronic anxiety or depression disorders as well as physical ailments.
“What I was able to evaluate in my clinics – adds Francesca Guerra, general practitioner at Bisenzio fields and coordinator of the Vivere Meglio project for Tuscany – is how much it disturbs how anxiety and depression are very frequent in women and in patients who already had a positive history of mental pathologies. AND this increase in disorders correlates with the extent of harm patients have received and the social support they have received. This project provides very important help in supporting citizens to ensure that these disorders do not become chronic. These are psychologists who are hosted in our clinics and this serves to make patients aware of the fact that access to treatment of the body is at the same level as access to treatment of the mind”.
