piece of mind

Netherlands, The, 2002

Producers synopsis
PIECE OF MIND is a film about the field training of an international group of relief workers from Asia, Africa and Europe given by American psychologist Nancy Baron in the midst of a refugee camp in North Uganda. The participants, themselves victims of war and trauma, came from Tibet, Nepal, Algeria, Namibia, Burundi, Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Cambodia, Sri Lank and The Netherlands. Some are just housewives or social workers with little education while others are well-trained psychiatrists and psychotherapists. All are highly motivated to help, inspired by their own backgrounds and hope for the future. The film makes clear that motivation alone is not enough and that a higher formal education may indeed even hamper the worker’s efforts to help. Understanding of individual cultural beliefs on the part of both victims and helpers is essential in tackling the problems of people who have lost their homes, their families, their livelihoods and even their trust in life.