WHO WE ARE
UOSSM Netherlands is the Dutch branch of UOSSM International, the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations — a humanitarian medical network founded by medical doctors committed to the right to life, health and well-being. For more than a decade, UOSSM has supported people affected by conflict and displacement through healthcare, nutrition, protection, and mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), from Syria to Gaza, Ukraine, Lebanon and beyond.
In the Netherlands, we carry this mission forward with a focused commitment to the mental health and psychosocial well-being of Syrian refugees and their families as they rebuild their lives and participate in Dutch society.
Since 2011, more than 126,000 Syrians have found safety in the Netherlands. Rebuilding a life after forced displacement involves far more than housing, language acquisition and administrative processes. Many individuals and families also have to navigate the psychological and social consequences of conflict, loss, displacement and resettlement, alongside barriers to accessing appropriate support — including language barriers, stigma, limited familiarity with the Dutch healthcare system, and differences in how mental health is understood and discussed.
UOSSM Netherlands works to reduce these barriers by connecting Syrian families with culturally responsive, evidence-informed mental health and psychosocial support, strengthening awareness and early identification, and improving pathways to appropriate services.
We work in partnership with Dutch organizations, including VluchtelingenWerk Nederland (the Dutch Council for Refugees), and with Syrian mental health professionals practicing in the Netherlands. Our approach combines community-based support with referral to appropriate professional care, while placing cultural responsiveness, dignity, confidentiality, and the lived experience of displaced communities at the center of our work.
Our Goals in THE NETHERLANDS
- Increase equitable access to culturally responsive mental health and psychosocial support for Syrian refugees and their families, including support in their own language.
- Strengthen parents' and caregivers' capacity to recognize early signs of psychological distress in children and young people and to seek appropriate support.
- Provide children and young people (youth) with safe, age-appropriate and creative opportunities for emotional expression and psychosocial support.
- Improve families' mental health literacy and their ability to understand and navigate the Dutch mental healthcare system.
- Strengthen referral pathways between community-based support, relevant local services and specialized mental health care.
- Contribute to social inclusion, participation and community well-being among Syrian families in the Netherlands.
UOSSM NL believes that mental well-being isn't a side issue in integration, it's the foundation of it. A person who feels psychologically safe is better able to learn a new language, build a career, raise their children, and become part of their new community.
Our Approach
- Person-centred and culturally responsive: services and communication are adapted to participants’ language, cultural context, lived experience and needs.
- Community-based: we work through trusted community networks and partnerships to make mental health support more accessible and reduce barriers to engagement.
- Early identification and referral: we strengthen awareness of psychological distress, support timely recognition of concerns, and facilitate connection with appropriate levels of care.
- Family- and child-sensitive: we recognize the role of caregivers, family relationships and developmental needs in mental health and psychosocial well-being.
- Evidence-informed and accountable: our programmes use structured activities, participant feedback and pre-/post-session evaluation where appropriate to strengthen quality and inform future programming.
- Linked to integration and social inclusion: mental health and psychosocial well-being are addressed as an important enabler of participation in education, employment, family life and community life.
Board of Directors
Wassim AL.taha
Yousef Darwish
Saleem Bachara
Bertus Vastenburg
Naast het bieden van directe medische zorg en noodhulp
werkt de UOSSM ook aan het opbouwen van de capaciteit van lokale gezondheidswerkers en het verbeteren van de gezondheidszorgsystemen in crisisgebieden. De organisatie streeft ernaar om duurzame oplossingen te vinden voor de humanitaire crises waarmee mensen worden geconfronteerd.
