Letters

Wounded child no surviving family

A plea from child psychiatrists in Ireland

Wed Dec 13 2023 - 01:40

Sir, – In her painfully and eloquently written piece, “Words are no good to my sister, whose home in Gaza has been destroyed” (Opinion, December 7th), Fatin al Tamimi writes of her sister Heba’s perilous journey of displacement in Gaza, where she and her children have been repeatedly ordered to evacuate, and their ensuing sense of abandonment in the desert.

We as a global community have witnessed the atrocities and inhumanities in Palestine and Israel for more than two months. As we approach Christmas, the stories of our fellow human beings’ suffering ring out.

The newly coined term WCNSF – wounded child no surviving family – is as cold as the words, and their meaning is stark.

In the aftermath of the world wars and the ensuing impact of loss, suffering and displacement, much was learned about child development.

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John Bowlby, a child psychiatrist who had, at first hand, witnessed the impact of parental loss and separation on children, wrote of the significance of attachment, the special bond between infants and children and their parents, and the profound impact this relationship has on development, protecting against trauma, its influence extending across the lifespan.

We understand as child and adolescent psychiatrists the impact of violence, war and trauma on development and mental health.

The atrocities and barbaric acts of October 7th in Israel, instigated by Hamas and claiming the lives of so many innocent Israeli infants, children, teens and adults, and endangering the lives and wellbeing of many hostages and relatives, have shocked and appalled us.

However, the ensuing bombardment of Palestine by the Israeli forces, supported by international benefactors, as of December 12th, has led to in excess of 17,700 deaths, more than 7,000 of these children, is unjustifiable.

Injury, impact of starvation, illness and displacement add to the inhumane experiences of one of the world’s most disadvantaged, vulnerable and oppressed populations.

As with many injustices, disproportionate suffering falls on the most vulnerable among them – babies, children, pregnant women and the elderly.

We look on as children play in the rubble, run for shelter from the bombs, are silent or cry in desperation in hospital beds and makeshift dwellings, and wonder how can they make sense of these experiences.

From a distance, we look on as their parents, shocked and numb, remain helpless to protect them. Trauma of the most acute, immense and long-lasting nature is unfolding before our eyes; however, the human suffering existed and continues in Sudan, Ukraine, Syria, Yemen and many other parts of our world.

As child psychiatrists working with children who have experienced loss and trauma, we are aware of the wide-ranging and long-lasting detrimental impact. We see the long-lasting impact of parental trauma and transgenerational trauma.

As citizens of Ireland, we have personal experience of the impact of violence on our shores and the lasting impact on our culture, and can empathise with the experiences from both perspectives.

We are urging our leaders to insist on an immediate and unconditional ceasefire; to call for humanitarian assistance to be provided immediately to Palestine; to create a response which will ensure peaceful negotiation of the release of the remaining Israeli hostages; and a response which can begin the process of healing for all those suffering, setting individual political, cultural and historic sympathies aside, and focusing on the value of each human being, no matter what nationality, religion or persuasion.

Words alone are no use, words with action carry meaning. We cannot remain inactive or silent. Yours, etc,

Dr Aoife Twohig,

Prof Fiona McNicholas,

Dr Kieran Moore,

Asst Prof Elizabeth Barrett,

Dr Antoinette Dalton,

Dr Veselina Gadancheva,

Department of Paediatric

Liaison Psychiatry,

Children’s Health Ireland

.