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Domitina Kahira, a resident of Biharamulo District in Tanzania’s north-eastern Kagera Region, is treading a difficult path to recovery after losing her husband to Marburg virus disease in early January 2025.
Being a close contact of a person infected with the virus, she was admitted to a Marburg isolation centre for 21 days to monitor her health and avoid further possible transmission at home. Kahira was discharged and reunited with her family. But the grief from her husband’s death and the adjustment to life in the aftermath has taken a toll on her mental health.
“I was worried about my pregnancy, my children at home and our future,” she says of her time in the isolation centre. “How was I going to look after them on my own? How was the community going to receive me? A lot was going on in my head.”
Mental health challenges are exacerbated during health emergencies, with recovered patients, community members and health workers facing vulnerabilities. To help with these mental health challenges, a World Health Organization (WHO) expert, working with a psychiatrist, Ministry of Health social welfare officers and UNICEF, has been providing counselling and psychosocial support to around 280 people, including Kahira, who were discharged from isolation and treatment centres. Another 110 health workers, community members and others affected by the outbreak have also received similar services.
“The sleepless nights I had have massively reduced compared with previous days,” says Kahira. “I am also relieved to reunite with my children.”
The regular counselling sessions use a “psychological first aid” approach, a supportive intervention designed to help people in the immediate aftermath of a crisis or traumatic event. Its primary goal is to reduce stress and lower the risk of long-term psychological problems.
“Being in the frontline of the response, WHO has witnessed how mental health and psychosocial support services are crucial in rebuilding people’s resilience during and after emergencies,” says Jerry Mlembwa, WHO Tanzania’s risk communication and community engagement officer. “WHO will continue working with the government of Tanzania and partners to strengthen mental health systems to offer a range of basic and clinical care services to contribute to socio-economic recovery.”
Counselling sessions cover reunification with the family, self-care, stress management, and referrals for psychiatric medication, if applicable. Counsellors also provide families with reunification kits, consisting of household goods and health and food items, and early childhood development kits for the children, encouraging them to deal with the impact of the death through play and learning.
Kahira, like others, also received support in reintegrating back into her community. “I was worried that people in my community would give me a cold look as I returned to my home,” she recalls. “But it turned out differently. I am happy to be welcomed back to my home village with much love and dignity after all I went through.”
“This psychosocial support has brought families together,” says regional social welfare officer, Rebecca Gwambasa. “Diseases outbreaks leave a mark on communities, and thanks to WHO, we are building back a happy community.”
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization – United Republic of Tanzania.
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