Israel must develop a new protocol to treat survivors of October 7 - opinion

After October 7, therapy rooms have been filled with children who experienced extreme cases of complex trauma, which even the professional literature has yet to recognize. These are children whose parents were murdered by Hamas terrorists in front of their eyes, whose friends were kidnapped to Gaza, and who themselves were miraculously saved only because they hid in a blood-filled closet and waited hours to be rescued. 

Often, their relatives and friends, too, needed complex trauma relief and therapeutic intervention, along with others for whom the very difficult events triggered past traumas and led to complex mental health cases. It must be said that the mental health system for therapeutic intervention for a mega terrorist event like that of October 7 would not exist without the enormous assistance of the Diaspora Jews – those who financially supported the wartime response that the State of Israel was unable to do fully cover.

The Gaza war is understandably widely influencing the therapeutic world. The horrific events – and survivors’ testimonies – have created a huge national trauma, which has normalized the public’s need for therapeutic help for all ages and children in particular, who have lost trust in the adults who were supposed to protect them. 

Furthermore, the war revealed, anew, the lack of appropriate therapeutic resources available, especially in the case of such a monumental event as October 7. If, in more normal times, there was an existing shortage of qualified therapists, in the current war this shortage has taken on huge significance, reflected in the sub-par response – especially regarding long-term treatment. This undoubtedly also affects the reputation of the caring professions. 

It is important to note that in addition to the first circle of post-traumatic survivors – those who experienced the events firsthand – there are also other circles in the Israeli public whose mere exposure to the facts of the event, the testimonies, and the harsh sights, has left them with wide-ranging mental scars.

For each and every one of those we treat, methods are adapted based on behavior, nature of the trauma, degree of openness and willingness to receive assistance, and coping abilities. Therefore, therapists from the Israel Association for Child Protection (ELI) have been mobilizing the best of their skills and resources in order to ensure the most favorable outcomes for the therapeutic process.

We at ELI firmly believe that the survivors need us to commit to providing them with long-term therapeutic intervention in order to ensure that they can return to society and reintegrate into their communities while learning to live with the trauma that will undoubtedly accompany them forever.

In the absurd reality that has been created, Diaspora Jews are playing a significant role in the therapeutic response that the survivors are receiving from ELI and others. These worldwide Jewish communities have proven that in the moment of truth, we are all one people. The Israeli public must remember that the Jews of the Diaspora were the first to finance therapeutic treatments for the survivors and that they did so quickly.

Looking ahead, the State of Israel must commit to a number of steps that will ensure quality long-term care for the survivors of the October 7 massacre. Without a coordinated treatment plan for the survivors, untreated post-traumatic generations will grow up in Israel and the problems will multiply. 

The steps that follow must be taken to prevent this:

• A protocol and an appropriate treatment plan must be prepared for the surviving children and their families; this protocol will combine therapeutic approaches and modalities, current professional information, and guidelines.

• There must be an increase in the number of trained professionals and the development of a professional response to the demand for qualified clinicians, especially for children.

• Peer-learning mechanisms must be established internationally – similar to those that took part in the treatment of the 9/11 victims in the United States – for the purpose of enriching professional knowledge.

• There must be investment in long-term therapeutic intervention for children and their families who survived the events of October 7.

At ELI, we have already begun providing long-term care along with our “normal” work of treating abused children (sexual abuse, violence or neglect) and their families.

Involuntarily, we have found ourselves, together with our esteemed donors, playing an important role in Jewish history by working with what some call the “victims” of October 7, but whom our therapists call “heroes.”

The writer is the president of ELI – Israel Association for Child Protection. He will be a speaker at The Jerusalem Post Annual Conference in New York on June 3. For more information: jpost.com/AC24