Psychology in a war zone: clinical intervention in Gaza and the Médecins Sans Frontières field experience

Abstract

The aim of this article is to describe the author’s clinical experience as a psychologist working with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in the Gaza Strip and to reflect on psychological intervention in the context of prolonged war. Particular attention is given to Ongoing Traumatic Stress Disorder (OTSD), which differs from classical PTSD in the absence of a post-event phase, as traumatic exposure remains continuous and ongoing. The article describes MSF’s intervention model, structured at two levels: psychological support for hospitalized patients, including psychological pain management, processing of loss, and response to primary needs; and psychological support for local healthcare workers, who are themselves directly and continuously exposed to trauma. Based on clinical observation in the field, the article highlights the urgent need to recognize psychological intervention as an integral, rather than ancillary, component of healthcare responses in prolonged humanitarian crises.