The first congress on the role of support services in NGOs

The first congress on the role of support services in non-governmental organizations was held on February 16th , 2012 on the occasion of ‘The World Cancer Week’  & ‘International Childhood Cancer Day (ICCD)’ at MAHAK amphitheater. The main objective of this congress was to share lessons learned and experiences gained by MAHAK in the field of support services during its two decades of activity, covering over 17,000 cancer-stricken children.

The congress with three sections, enjoyed participants from different strata of the field ranging from university professors, students and graduates in the fields of social services, social sciences and psychology to social workers and psychologists working with NGOs.

During introductory remarks, Ms. Saideh Ghods, MAHAK founder and the congress secretary, highlighted the need to revisit the unique position of support culture in philanthropist activities. She explained the root of support in providing services as distinct from strict financial assistance and particularly the positive role of support services in non-governmental organizations.

This was followed by a presentation provided by Ms. Shirin Sedighnejad presentation, the manager of MAHAK support services section which hosted this event, regarding the performance of her department during the mentioned period. She stressed the role of MAHAK support services department in communicating closely with children and their families in order to provide them with support services through three domains of social work, psychology, and welfare services. The distinguishing characteristic of this department is to identify the children with cancer in need and then develop an action plan for addressing those needs. Sometimes, children with cancer are referred to MAHAK  volunteers available at the state university hospitals through their physicians, social workers of hospitals and/or MAHAK supporters.

She also noted that among additional services provided by her department are assisting in raising  life expectancy of patients through transition to ‘a normal life’ after entering remission phase as well as during their academic year. Additionally and in the case a child loses the battle against cancer, MAHAK continues support to his/her family members. She finished her speech by pointing out the only residential; canter in Iran for cancer-stricken children and their families is MAHAK.

The first section with focus on psychological supports was followed by presentations on the  positive impact of story and art therapy on stress reduction among patients as examples of effective interventions.

The laudable effect of support services at MAHAK was reinforced  by attending lecturers, professors and psychologists in the second section.

In the following presentation, Dr. Amir Mahmud Harirchi, assistant professor, University of Social Welfare & Rehabilitation Sciences pointed out the importance of sharing NGOs’ lessons learned with the scientific communities. Then Ms. Behnaz Asangari, the head of MAHAK social work department, discussed one of MAHAK cancer-stricken children as the case study to outline the performance of support services and their intertwined cooperation with psychologists for the audience. Once a case is diagnosed with depression by social workers, he/she will be immediately referred to psychology department for further treatment and consulting services. She also introduced the Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) ward as the latest project of MAHAK and the vital role of support team in mentally preparing the child patient and his/her family for undergoing surgery in this special ward.

The congress came to an end by dedicating memorandum plaques to appreciate those who support MAHAK through their invaluable endeavors.