Empowering Ukrainian Healthcare and Humanitarian Aid Workers: Cocreating a Peer Support Staff Wellbeing Curriculum

Courtney Welton-Mitchell^1*Nawaraj Upadhaya²Andrew Riley³Julius Torres Kellinghusen²Alexa Hansen⁴Halyna Skipalska⁵Peter Navario²Theresa P Castillo²

• ¹University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States
• ²HealthRight International, NYC, United States
• ³Center for Operational Analysis and Research (COAR), Nicosia, Cyprus
• ⁴Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), Denver, United States
• ⁵HealthRight Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine

In February 2022 Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine. National aid workers responded to the crisis, at the risk of their own wellbeing. This case study details the cocreation of a peer support intervention by a global public health non-profit working with national staff in Ukraine. As a first step in peer support wellbeing curriculum development, an online survey was developed and administered for 530 Ukrainian healthcare and humanitarian aid workers. The survey resulted in 300 valid responses, for a 57% response rate. Top stressors included: personal safety and security (43%), concerns for family and friends (32%), and financial hardships (29%). Just over one-third of respondents indicated that stress was interfering with their ability to do their job. Common forms of coping included distraction (73%), and use of alcohol or drugs (32%). Nearly all (97%) indicated interest in a peer support group intervention. In addition to interest in socializing with colleagues, top preferences for curriculum content included: coping skills, psychological preparedness, peer support facilitation skills, and healthy team dynamics. Survey results were used to develop a 6-module peer support group curriculum, refined through subsequent workshops. This participatory approach can be utilized to develop tailored wellbeing curriculum for workers of various types and across settings.