Providing emergency mental health support to Israeli civilians evacuated from their homes following the events of October 7th, 2023.

Abstract

On October 7th, 2023, a deadly attack was launched on southern Israel from the Gaza Strip followed by major clashes along the Israel-Lebanon border. In the following days, approximately 2.5% of the Israeli population was evacuated from their homes, many of whom were directly affected by the violence Many evacuees were housed in Eilat, a small geographically peripheral city known for its holiday atmosphere in the southernmost part of Israel. The horrors of the terror attacks and the war, the unprecedented number of evacuees, and the highly limited mental health resources available in this remote city have combined to create an overwhelming demand for mental health services, which required the deployment of special measures. In this report from the field, we discuss our experiences in sending the first organized, organic teams to provide primary mental health support to the evacuees, with the supervision of Shalvata Mental Health Center, located over 300 km away from Eilat. Our experience highlights the need for proper preparation, planning, and practice for large-scale mental health support intervention in mass evacuation events and points to several successful and suboptimal practices for future deployment.