Refugee Health: Strategies for Trauma Healing & Wellness

 

“Healing Ourselves, Healing Our World” 

 Presented by: Joan Rebmann Condon, M.A., Capacitar International  

Joan Rebmann Condon M.A.  Special Projects Director and International Trainer for Capacitar International a network of solidarity and empowerment. She has worked in the field of health and international development since 1990 and with Capacitar International since 1995. She also served as the executive director of International Medical Relief Fund for 9 years. She has an M.A. in the Humanities and has taught leadership and team development as well as Capacitar holistic trauma healing practices to groups in the U.S., Central and South America, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, the Philippines, East Timor and Indonesia.  She is the co-author of “Healing Trauma, Empowering Wellness.”. Joan is especially dedicated  to work with women who struggle to improve their own lives and the lives of their families and other women, the underserved and with people affected by violence and poverty in the United States and globally.

She currently is a member of the board of directors of the Monterey Bay Chapter of the United Nations Association and advisor to the Rosa Andrade Midwife Associaiton, Suchitoto, El Salvador

Capacitar’s program of wellness practices and method of popular education have been field-tested with thousands of participants in the United States and in over 40 other countries.   Capacitar trains in Asia, Africa, Caribbean, Central America, and the Middle East all places represented by our neighbors. 

Introduction to Capacitar:

History, Philosophy, Energy Theory and Eastern-Western Medicine, Use of Capacitar practices in different cultures and impact and outcomes.  

Practices:

• Tai Chi—movement and meditation
• Switching
• Fingerholds to manage emotions
• Visualization
• Emotional Freedom Technique
• Pal Dan Gum
• The Holds

Capacitar is for people interested in healing and transforming stress in themselves and in their family, community and society. Capacitar teaches simple wellness practices that are effective in empowering people in their own process of healing. These body, mind and spirit practices can be used in many different ways—to deal with stress of daily life, to promote healthy family relationships, to use in meetings and as dynamics with groups and grassroots organizations and to inspire a greater sense of wellbeing in people of all ages. The Capactiar practices have been used with a wide variety of people and cultures—youth, women and children, families, seniors, indigenous, immigrants, refugees, prisoners, survivors, people with drug or alcohol dependency, the disabled, religious, psychologists, social workers, educators and health professionals.  

Where does the medicine go? 

 A discussion about culture and traditional remedies

Presented by: Shana Pughe Dean, M.A., Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees 

Shana Pughe Dean is the Manager of Strategic Initiatives and Training and Translation Manager for TONE.  Through her roles Shana oversees recruitment, processes, and customer relations for the translation department, develops and delivers cultural competency training, and supports online content management. 

Mrs. Pughe Dean  holds a B.A. from Utica College in International Studies with minors in Human Rights and Spanish and a M.A. in International Relations from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University. Shana has presented at the North American Refugee Healthcare Conference, the American Translators Association, most recently at the New York Cancer Registrars Conference, and made a memorable impression at the 2016 Unspoken conference with her "ketchup".  

Where does the medicine go? Join MVRCR in a discussion about culture and traditional remedies. What is considered a “healthcare” need, and the proper treatment for such needs, is not just impacted by education and health literacy, but greatly influenced by cultural perspectives and the environment. How is a different worldview influencing a patient’s treatment. The cultural perspective through which an individual sees their health and healthcare impacts the decisions they make. “All people see the world not as it is, but as they are.”  Participants will engage in small group discussion, consider scenarios, and view some "different" medicines.