TPC Journal-V6, Issue 4- FULL ISSUE

The Professional Counselor /Volume 6, Issue 4 325 In such cases, religion and spirituality can be explored in individual counseling sessions. Research has shown that religious coping can be used effectively by refugees (Clarke & Borders, 2014). For example, a Muslim refugee client might think that he or she deserves the current circumstances and whatever happens is Allah’s will. This belief represents the basic idea of Qadar – destiny or fate – and should be addressed carefully by the counselor because Qadar includes the individual’s will and belief that everything comes from Allah/God, and since refugees are under stress they can give up all the responsibility to Allah or God. A holistic approach that focuses on both the individual’s and society’s values and needs should be implemented since culture and religion provide significant means for coping. Challenges With Counseling Interventions Many migrants and forced refugees are not familiar with the concepts of counseling, which might seem strange to them (Akinsulure-Smith, 2009; Akinsulure-Smith & O’Hara, 2012). Refugees need to understand the services available in order to benefit maximally from them. The government and humanitarian agencies need to use terms that make sense for Syrians. When organizations prepare brochures, handbooks, reports and name plates, they should explain available mental health and counseling services, define counselor , and explain their services. Most Turkish counselors who work with Syrians were educated in Turkish counseling programs, which were modeled on U.S. programs and included Western-based counseling theories (Mocan-Aydin, 2000). This Western-based education and theories might decrease the effectiveness of counseling and challenge counselors because Syrians come from an Eastern culture. Since they have moved to a new culture, been separated from families, and experienced pressure and persecution, many refugees do not understand their new culture or know where to find help. In this respect, a group of Syrian mental health facilitators trained with the NBCC MHF program can be a valuable resource for working with this population (Hinkle, 2014). The inclusion of trained community volunteers will likely increase refugees’ access to mental health services while simultaneously decreasing the work load of professional counselors. Conclusion Over 2.8 million Syrian refugees have resettled in Turkey in the period of 2011 to 2016 (UNHCR, 2016). As the refugee population continues to grow, host nations will need to prepare a systematic response to this continuing humanitarian crisis in ways that support the basic human needs of forcibly displaced people. The Turkish government has responded to the presence of Syrian refugees with interventions that support basic survival needs (i.e., food and shelter). The availability of mental health and social services for refugees is limited and remains a focus of humanitarian assistance. Counselors should be cognizant of the traumatic experiences refugees often endure in the context of displacement and ongoing conflict. Counselor training and facilitation of community-based mental health advocates such as those provided by MHF can increase the impact of available counseling interventions for refugees. In addition, the IASC four levels crisis intervention approach, which is used by the Turkish Red Crescent organization, can be beneficial to address traumatic experiences and the needs of refugees. Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure The authors reported no conflict of interest or funding contributions for the development of this manuscript.